Independence Unbending
by Vorazlov28
Summary: Amaya may not be a regular ninja, but she has never done anything to draw attention to herself. She finds herself putting the person closet to her in danger when a memeber of the Akatsuki kidnaps them. To even consider loving him? What's she thinking?
1. Nightmares

So, I wasn't really sure if I should post this on here or not. I don't really know since I'm still relatively knew to all of this stuff, but I decided heck with it and hope you guys like it. If so please, please review! (Any suggestions or tips or anything would be greatly appreciated.) Sorry the first chapter is so short - mine usually are for some reason - but I promise it'll get better and a lot longer as I keep going.

**Copywrite:** If I really owned it, do you think I would be doing this? None of the usual stuff is mine, only the characters you don't know about and the things you've never heard of.

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><p><strong>Prolouge<strong>

A wise old man once told me, the day the world comes crashing down there would be no one to save but myself. At first, I didn't believe him. I was still young and full of love and hope. Even thinking about sacrificing everyone else just so I could live petrified me.

Then things changed.

Thirteen years ago a war broke out. I hardly remember those days. In the midst of all of the panic and fear, true chaos reigns and suddenly it was as if I didn't know anyone anymore. All humanity turns into nothing more than a distant memory lost in the mass confusion and terror. People started to kill each other. Stealing. Betraying. Anything to save themselves. It became a fight to survive. Independence unbending: the only person one can rely on is oneself. It was then that I learned what that old man truly meant. People would do anything to survive. It was in their nature—self preservation. They would do anything even if it meant losing part of themselves in the process, even if it meant losing their humanity. I had to admit in a way it was true, every bit.

Yet he was wrong.

Sometimes the human heart doesn't think that way. One thing I've learned now is that life is unpredictable. Even in the direst of situations, when one people care for another more than himself or herself, things change.

And people have always been scared of change.

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><p><strong>Nightmares<strong>

Amaya ran to her room. Her tiny bare feet padded loudly against the frigid wood floors and the sound echoed around her, beating down against her shoulders with each step. Inside her little heart was beating too fast. Too hard. It hurt every time, hammering against her chest. There was nothing she could do to stop it. No matter how fast she tried running, the hallways seemed to stretch out under her feet pushing her further and further away.

Sharp, ragged breathing blocker her from hearing anything. A thump near the bottom of the stairs made the hairs on the back of her neck shoot up on end and she swirled around to see behind her.

Nothing.

Turning again she sprinted down the halls, twisting and turning towards the final door.

They were coming for him. They were coming for all of them. Seekers. The most vial and despised ninja, hunting down targets like slaughter house pigs and murdering anyone them met along the way. They were the reason Amaya was always moving with her father. They were the ones who gave her nightmares and choked her to tears at night.

They were here.

Amaya cringed, sprinting through the labyrinth of hallways, using walls and corners to keep her from ramming into anything. She needed to be quick. Smart. She needed to be strong. Everything she wasn't…

Finally she stumbled along the right door. It was different than the others. As soon as she flung open her door the loud roar of thunder boomed through the house. The pounding quickened in her chest. She could barely breathe.

A storm had been raging since dawn, darkening the room considerably. This was when they came. Never on sunny days. Never when the warmth of the day was there to comfort her. Only when the thunder and the pouring rain could hide her cries. Father had warned her, told her about people like them, told her of the vial things they did.

Quickly she searched around, scanning the floors desperately for what she needed. Lightning flashed outside, illuminating everything around her for the barest of moments, but it was enough. Enough to catch the slight gloom in the corner of the room and the menacing shadow leaping out to grab her with an ear-splitting _screech!_

Jumping, Amaya hastily shook her head, willing the images to go away. There wasn't time for fear. No time for panic. She had to focus.

From the corner of her eye, she caught sight of the slight hole in the middle of one of her floorboards. It was barely large enough for a pencil to fit through, but if she tried, she could slip in her pinky. Not wasting a second, she flew over to it, clawing desperately to loosen the board. Her hands trembled. A chill creeping down her back. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't seem to get it open. The sounds of the front door sliding open made her throat tighten.

Not much time.

Any noise would draw their attention. She wouldn't be able to go for help if they caught her now. Father was counting on her. He needed her. It was enough pressure to cause a cold sweat to break out across her chalky skin, sending her heart pounding out of her chest and her stomach in her throat. When all else failed she had to be strong. He made her promise to take care of herself and her baby brother.

Her small fingers worked quietly as she worked at the board.

The clang of metal on metal erupted down stairs followed by voices, but the pounding rain beating against the windows was far louder. She was too far away to hear what they were saying, but she knew her father was down there. That they were fighting. Killing. Her throat tightened.

_Run Amaya! Don't let them find you. You and Hiroshi have to make it out. You're the only ones left._

Her father's warning stirred something inside her she couldn't quite place. The rush growing inside her was getting louder and louder. Everything was so sharp. Cracks in the wall. Leaves blowing on trees outside. It felt like she could see everything, hear _everything_. It was crisp even in the dark skies.

The dark shadows between each blazing zap of lightning brought out the true terrors and monsters hiding in the dank crevices. Every deafening crack of thunder brought them closer. The skies were a barrier locking in all of the problems and pains. Usually it made her feel safer, as if she wouldn't be alone anymore. However, as she heard another clang; something over turning; a vase shattering, she knew she had never been more alone in her life.

Finally, the board gave way under her little fingers. It revealed a small hole with a rusting metal latter leading down into the dark abyss below. It wasn't big but if she tried, she could squeeze down into the tunnel that ran under their house. Once she hit the bottom there would be a complete network of tunnels and caves connecting her to every single building in the city. From there she would be able to run for help. Here they could never find her, not in time. There were too many dead ends and shortcuts.

There was another crash downstairs. A window? A vase? The table? It sounded like a glass shattering over her head. But there shouldn't have been anything to break…

Hiroshi stated to cry from his crib over in the corner of the room. The noise was loud, crisp. It sliced through the air faster than she could breathe and stabbed into her like a knife, cutting into her heart. Panicking she swung her head around, staring at her baby brother. Not thinking Amaya raced over to the crib, throwing herself wildly over the bars to smother the little mouth of the other side, but it was too late.

There was silence for a moment. It beat so loudly against her ears. Every shuffle felt like bombs dropping overhead. It was filled with the quickening pulse of her blood rushing from her face.

A scream—cold sweats broke down her back.

That was Father's voice.

A lone deep voice rose over the thundering roar of the raging storm. It was a voice smoother than silk and softer than anything she had ever heard. No one could mistake the promise in his voice when he said: "…kill him..."

It made her heart stop.

Hurriedly she cradled the crying baby into her tense arms before hurrying back towards the secret passage. The floor let out an ear-splitting _squeak_ in resistance. She froze. The house was quiet for a moment. So loud in her mind. Everything was so loud. Amaya pressed Hiroshi's face gingerly into the crook of her neck to protect him, to hide him, but it was too late. Seconds after footsteps reverberated down the hall.

"Find the baby and get rid of it," the same man hissed.

His voice was closer, so much closer than before. How could he have already made it so far through the maze of hallways and rooms?

No time. Gasping for air, she shot for the hiding spot, crossing the large room in two bounding strides. Hiroshi's cries grew louder. The footsteps were getting closer. Thuds against the floor. Bangs from them throwing open the other doors. Close. Everything was so close.

Once she made it, Amaya wasted no time climbing down into the dark, coddling Hiroshi in an awkward position with one arm. It welcomed her with loving arms, engulfing her in the mysteries and tragedies it held. Her fingers barely managed to pull the board back in place when her door slid open. She shut out the world.

It wasn't the frigid air or the musky smell floating over the water at the bottom of the latter that made her knees quiver and hands shake. Not even the haunted cries radiating from her little baby brother as he fought desperately against her grip. Before she knew it, her feet were moving under her, mechanically, stiffly. Yet all she could think about was her father.

They were killing him.


	2. Midnight Visitors

**AN:** Don't really have much to say besides that if you're reading this thanks I guess. Just as a warning Zetsu won't come in for a little bit while I set up the plot and storyline here. This is pretty much the first fanfic I've ever really tried to write so let me know your thoughts! If I was a mind reader I'd already be rich and famous. Definitely not here :]

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><p><strong>Chapter 2<strong>

**Midnight Visitor**

Shooting out of bed, I clutched at the burning in my chest. Gasping I reached up for my throat to cut off the sudden burst of fire tearing through me. My free hand already clasp around the hidden kunai under my pillow, clenching onto the smooth cold handle for dear life. I flinched back something flashed outside. Seconds later a mind-numbing explosion sent my heart battering against my chest.

Blinding white lightning flared through the dark sky again just as the clap of thunder roared in the distance. Another crashed into life in time with the beating of my racing heart, continuing the angry dance of the perpetual flashes slicing through the coal black clouds. Trees and bushes bowed down in the hash gusts of wind, ripping at the walls and windows.

_Another storm, _I thought with a grateful sigh_._ I stared hard out at the window as my racing heart finally started to slow. Even still, the twitching _itch _in my muscles didn't start to go away, anticipating the next attacker.

But it was just another storm.

I sighed, carefully placing the kunai back under my pillow before staring down at my hands. I had to force the tension to ebb from my shoulders, slowly working its way out of my trembling hands. For just sleeping, I felt exhausted.

There was silence for a moment between striking thunder. It beat so loudly against my ears. Every shuffle felt like bombs dropping overhead. It was filled with the quickening pulse of my blood slowly pulsating through my veins.

A scream—I jolted as the crash sent me reaching for my kunai again.

"It was just a dream. It was just a dream," I murmured, tucking my knees to my chest. I closed my eyes, repeating the words I knew would never comfort me. Because it would never just be a dream.

It had been almost a year now since I had that nightmare. At least it looked like a nightmare. Memories were the worst type of nightmares. Everything was always so sharp and precise, and the pain—oh, the pain—so excruciating. It just felt so _real._ Sighing I dangled my feet off the edge of the bed at I tried to rub the images from my eyes. Every time I closed my eyes, I could still see it. Her face. _My _face. It was so clear.

The pitter-patter of rain washing down against the window caught my attention. Closing my eyes, I shut out everything else, everything but the rain.

There would be no way I would get back to sleep now.

Outside there was a light rapping against the window. Jumping, I snapped alertly towards the sound. Lightning streaked through the night followed quickly by the crisp thunder. For a second I almost thought I saw someone moving outside—was it them? Had they found me again so soon? I didn't even notice I had reached back again towards my kunai. Then for the barest of moments, it was still. I sat perched at the end of my bed listening to the continuous onslaught of water splattering venomously against the glass. Several seconds later, the light rapping came again. Five soft knocks and then silence.

I let out a thankful sigh, letting my body relax again.

On nights like this Katsu, a small raven-haired boy from the city would come knocking on my window. I had met him a while back on one of my rare excursions into the city at the note there was a medical emergency in the hospital bay. Chisenochi didn't have an active ninja serving anymore so whenever anything happened the Lord would contact me. At the time my visits had become so frequent I was surprised I hadn't ran into him before.

Katsu was sitting alone in the playground, his back facing the street when I passed by. I found out later both of his parents had been murdered during the Great War and he had become one of the thousand of orphans because of it. It wasn't uncommon for a child to grow up without a mother or father in the ninja world. Sometimes a kid could have nobody. When someone walked down the street to market, it was common to see kids out fending for themselves. It was the type of world we lived in. I was so used to walking down the street and seeing kids all alone and beat up, I didn't even think twice about it, at least, not until I was on my way back from the clinic. I knew I looked worse for the wear, my clothes scuffed and blood stained, my hair mussed into unnatural positions across my head and my skin with an unhealthy blanch after having used too much chakra again.

He was still sitting in the middle of the playground all by himself when I walked by again. If it weren't for the form he had cradled to his chest, I wouldn't have ever looked back. The second he heard me, his head spun around. His eyes had been so wide and sad. Ice blue. Empty. There were red, dark bruises dipping beneath them with bloody tears staining down his face. Before I could move past he was on his feet, hurrying over in an awkward gimp with his shoulders and arms merged protectively around something I couldn't quite see.

It was a baby, no older than seven months old.

And it was dead.

I never found out where he found the kid, if it was a sibling of his or not, but when he asked me if there was anything I could do something deep inside me spider-webbed, cracking and disorienting my innards. There was nothing. It was already dead. Out of pity, I invited him to my house for somewhere to stay for the night. The next storm he came knocking on his own. Since then I had formed a bond with him stronger than anything I had ever felt.

I pulled off the covers and padded over to the window, swallowing the strange lump in my throat. As soon as I unclipped the lock, a burling gust of wind burst into my room blinding me with a mix of rain and fallen leaves. The wind tore around the room, pulling at the few scrolls and books lying around. I had to shield my eyes to peek out and see Katsu's pale face hidden under his drenched hair. He glanced up through the rain rubbing his arm for warmth.

Without a word, I held out my hand and helped him up to my second story window. Thankfully, the slight hill I had built my house into shortened the distance. With my muscles still trembling from my dream I didn't think I would have been able to pull him up all by my own, yet it didn't take much effort before he stood blankly in my room. Quickly I closed the windows locking out the rain.

From here, we had a ritual. I pulled out the two towels I kept in a chest at the foot of my bed—one for the floor and one for him to dry off—along with a fresh change of clothes. After setting them on the bed, I took off through the dark turns of my house downstairs to the kitchen to start some hot homemade ramen and jasmine tea. For Katsu I grabbed another kettle for Hot Coco. He would clean up in the meantime while I cooked. I sat calmly leaning against the central island for the water to boil. Upstairs I could hear Katsu shuffling around.

The house was deathly quiet. It couldn't be past two in the morning yet and even with the storm raging outside it, seemed quiet and cruel. I'd never really liked this house. I'd only been living here for about a year and a half since more Seekers came to Chisenochi to make their rounds around the nation, looking for more to kill. To keep from being seen, I'd built this house, way off from the village in a small clearing in the woods. Everything about it was cold.

Dark shadows covered most of the kitchen giving it an eerie feeling, but I shrugged it off; the house was always dark. I had my entire house and the surrounding forest mapped out flawlessly in my head just in case there ever were intruders who managed to find me. Before they could even reach the house, they would have triggered the silent alarms I had set up around the forest to give me time to pack and escape. With luck, I would already be halfway to the next village by the time they actually reached here.

Even though I didn't have to worry about Seekers now, I liked the dark. There weren't many pleasant things about it, which was probably one of the reasons I found myself so drawn to it in the first place. It gave me the eerie chill to remind me there was a special place reserved for me when I did happen to die, a place the damned wouldn't even be able to get into.

When Katsu came down, he would turn on the lights. Nevertheless, until then I stared out the window watching the flashes and streaks of electricity shooting through the night sky.

_Cold sweats broke down her back. Hiroshi let out a whine but it was drowned out by the rhythmic splashes of water curling around her legs as she ran through the tunnel. She could feel the panic, the death chasing her. All light had been cut off leaving her alone._

_Alone._

_So alone._

_Then another blood curling scream—_

I snapped alert at the sound of thunder booming through the sky. My heart was racing and my chest was burning. "A dream," I whispered, clenching my eyes closed. "It was just another dream. Snap out of it already!" I shook my head chiding myself. Still I couldn't stop my hands from trembling as I picked up a spoon to stir the noodles.

It was just the storm.

Katsu came down the stairs shortly after. I could sense his chakra slowly mixing in with the usual smells of my house—lilacs and soft cinnamon along with the smell of fresh salt—covering everything in his unique smell. Ever since I was little I had been able to sense others chakra, most of the time as smells. Normal smells faded with time, but chakra—no, the rich vibrant aromas of Katsu's chakra would never fade away. A small smile tugged at my lips. Light flooded the room as he came in revealing the warm steam swirling from the nozzles of each kettle. He quickly spotted the fresh apples and strawberries I had harvested a couple of days ago in the bowl on the middle of the island. Picking a couple strawberries, he took a seat at my small two-person table over in the far corner, the same spot as always.

I knew better than to speak now. He would talk when he was ready.

Both of the kettles whistled sharply. I turned off the oven and added my tea bag to one while I made his Hot Coco. I made sure to grab extra marshmallows. They always seemed to be able to make him smile and he looked more depressed than normal tonight. I brought both cups over at once and set his on the table before hopping onto the counter to sip my tea. We sat in silence waiting for the ramen.

From the corner of my eye, I glanced over at him. Ever since the day I met him I had noticed Katsu's eyes changed between blue and a dark green depending on his mood. The sharper and brighter the color was, the more dramatic he seemed to feel, but tonight they were deep, deep ocean-blue. He was staring hard at the steam rolling off his untouched cup. Slowly he wrapped his fingers around it.

I frowned, looking down at my own cup.

The ramen was nearly done so I set my cup down and went over to tend to the noodles, making sure they didn't get too soft or soggy. My ears perked up to the sound of his cup sliding across the table. His chakra was rolling off him in opaque gloomy waves thick enough they were tangible. He was too sad now. Closing my eyes, I tried to block out the feeling. I needed to do something. Forcing a blank face, I poured two bowls and grabbed our designated shop sticks from a cup over by the sink.

When I turned around, he was sipping thoughtfully on his drink. I walked over slowly and set down his bowl, grabbing my cup of tea from the counter to join him on the way. If I didn't know better I would say he was almost grinning down at his cup, a twisted grin like a jaded piece of broken glass, a grin so much like a smile it wasn't even close. Any movement now felt like it would throw him off. We had a silent promise not to do that to each other.

We ate in the silence.

I decided to give him a little longer before I would finally ask him what he was thinking. In the mean time, I focused solely on the sweet seasoned twist of my ramen, letting the savory flavor melt on my tongue each time before swallowing. It was good to have Katsu here now. It kept away all of the images.

In the end, I didn't have to say anything. Suddenly Katsu looked up halfway through his bowl and looked me straight in the eye. I pretended not to notice by taking extra care in wrapping my noodles around my chopsticks for another bite. It would have been easier to ignore a raging inferno burning around me, scolding off my charred flesh while I sat still watching all of the colors lick up towards my face.

"Have you ever thought about what it would be like if they were here?"

Sitting back, I closed my eyes chewing thoroughly before swallowing. _So this was what he was thinking about all this time_, I thought softly.

"It's not good to think about those kinds of things. They dull the senses and distract you from what is really happening around you." I opened my eyes to see him staring back down at his drink. Without meaning to, I smiled. It was broken. Hollow. "But yes,"—he looked up—"I do. I think about it all the time when I'm alone, even more than I probably should."

His eyes were helpless as he shook his head back and forth slightly. "I just wish there was something I could have done. I feel like I should have been able to save them somehow. I just… I don't know."

"Hey," I whispered reaching across the table for his hand. I pulled it up to my lips and kissed his palm before placing it against my cheek. His fingers were ice against my face. Stroking it lovingly, I gave him a weak smile. "Don't Katsu. Don't worry about things like that. What would your parents think if they would see their son like this? There was nothing you could have done. They died nobly in battle so that you, _you_ can live on for them. It was their choice."

Part of that was true, but I couldn't find it in my heart to tell him there was no way to die nobly in battle. There was nothing noble about battle at all. War only brought death and hatred. His parents could have only added to that before they died in a mass of raining blood and broken bodies.

With a sigh, he leaned forward letting his long bangs hang in his face. "I just miss them."

I kissed his palm again trying to smile for him.

"I know."

I sat there a moment stroking his hand with my thumb before finally sipping the rest of my tea. It was cold now making the flavor tart. Katsu finished my ramen for me before grabbing some more Hot Coco for himself. I took my time before heading to the sink to clean up. It was hard to pull myself away from him when he was like this.

After a while, he hopped up onto the counter next to me and handed me his bowl. "Isn't today…?" He trailed off staring out at something only he could see.

I closed my eyes for a moment. "Yes."

He was quiet for a while listening to the sounds of plates brushing up against each other as I washed them off. My plates from dinner earlier were still in the sink giving me even more work to do and I was thankful for the temporary distraction for my hands and mind. I was fine with the silence while I cleaned. Silence was good for me. I didn't like talking about today. No one would.

"Then are you going to go visit them?"

"No." I couldn't meet his gaze if I tried. My hands had started to tremble again. "I'm going to head up the mountains at dawn. I need to collect more Mocuba. I'm about ready to run out."

"Oh."

"They would understand."

He looked over at me curiously. I could see in his eyes he was dying to know more, but he never moved to speak. Tonight wasn't the time to talk. Right now, both of us were hurting. There was no need to talk.


	3. Visible Spy

**AN:** So sorry this has taken this long to get up! Nothing like the end of the school year and exams. Thanks so much Green Day's Jashinist for the review. I'm so glad you like it despite the fact I haven't even really got to the actually story yet. And no worries about Zetsu coming in. After this one you'll be stuck with him so much you'll probably get sick of him! :) It'll still be a little while though before the rest of the members come in though, which they will. Promise. But anyway, on with the story!

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><p><strong>Chapter 3<strong>

**Visible Spy**

Only the people who have ever been in the mountains could ever know what they were like. The mountains were the worst. Whatever I needed, I carried. Food was more important so I had to get rid of other less necessary things. Weapons came next. Unlike food, though, weapons were heavy. Most of the time they were sharp and uncomfortable, even if I wrapped them up in clothes and strategically placed them in my bag so I wouldn't get jagged. The truth was, there was only so much I could do in a situation where I was carrying armfuls of weapons as I clambered up a steep rocky cliff. Odds are I was bound to be stabbed by one.

My father made sure I was taught was how dangerous it could be to run into someone stronger than me if I wasn't prepared. A true ninja would be able to escape problems. And in order to be able to do that I needed to be ready for anything. No one else ever came up these mountains. If I was attacked, I would be on my own. What little room I had for more clothing or scrolls I had in the pouch on my right leg was filled with precious kunai and shuriken. They got in the way as I climbed over each rock and swung myself up onto the next ledge, stabbing my legs and waist, but I'd need them. Hopefully not. But maybe.

My pack would stay empty for now. Excluding my blanket, I would need to room for the herbs and roots I was looking for. If I couldn't collect enough, there wouldn't be enough Mocuba in my supplies to take care of the clan for the next couple of months. The Lord of our clan had been more than glutinous with my meager supplies lately claiming they were needed for "emergencies."

I'd kill that man if I ever had the chance to meet him face to face. He needed to learn real fast I wasn't some tool he could use as he pleased and I was planning on ramming it down his throat.

The legendary Sayon Mountains were the only place Mocuba could be found in all of the nations. They were the tallest and probably most dangerous mountains anyone had ever dared to climb. No one was recorded to ever make it to the top alive.

This was where I called home. It was the only place I actually felt safe.

One of the only reasons I was here: Mocuba. Every part of Mocuba could be used if harvested correctly. The leaves were one of the best cures for any poison, either neutralizing the effect or stalling for more time to find a proper cure. When the small, short bristles on the underside of the leave were removed, the leave itself could become a preservative and give fast energy if consumed. The roots were edible and were full of proteins. Other than that, the stem of the Mocuba plant was the strongest natural poison in nature by itself. The person would be dead in no less than thirty minutes if they so much as got a drop into their blood stream. Mocuba leaves were the only known cure. That was why I even dared coming up these mountains. I could use all of the Mocuba leaves I could get my hands on and I was the only one who knew where they were now. A lot of lives could be saved if I could find enough.

Climbing the mountains wasn't any easier than picking—or finding—the rare herb. Most of the path was nearly ninety degrees uphill over rocks and sharp ledges. Random drop-offs had been known to be the death of more than a few daring people who came up here. One-step could send me falling off the edge if I wasn't careful. With my bag and two weapon pouches, one of each leg, I also had to carry another sack full of my change of clothes, an extra pair of gloves, a small flask of water, several scrolls, a small medical kit, and three vials of the lone cure for Mocuba poisoning in case something went wrong. All together, it was at least over fifty pounds. Added to the fact of climbing up the treacherous mountains that were so infrequently used the paths were covered over in briers and thorns it made it nearly impossible. Every now and then, I would have to stray off course where the trees would fall or rockslides had cleared away foot holes, left to suffer and strain, feeling my back digging into my shoulders and back and fighting to hold my grip despite my sweaty hands.

How lovely.

I kept telling myself it was one more step. One more step and I would get to rest. One more step and I'd find a bunch of Mocuba nestled behind so ungodly rock and be able to go back down. One more step and I was done. One more… Only one more step. Then after that one step, I would realize that it was another step. And after that another one. My arms and legs were burning from the strain. But it was always just _one more_ step….

Normally the path isn't this hard. I would usually come up here three times a year: once in spring, once in summer, and once in fall. During winter, the rocks were too slick and dangerous to think about attempting the climb. Last year though, I had only managed to make it up once. It showed in all of the paths. Weeds and trees were already starting to line all of my normal trails. In most of my old footholds, roots and fuzzy grasses were breaking through making each step treacherous. From all of the recent storms trees were down and rocks had tumbled loose, littering the once flat ledges and transforming them into abstract deathtraps of shapes. It was unbelievable how much everything had over grown.

At least the sky was still bright, not necessarily from the sun, but bright enough blue to give me a clear view of where I was going.

Sort of.

I tried hard focusing on the sandy color of the rock or the rich dark green pine trees that dotted the mountain. The sun didn't even seem to be shining for a change. The warm rays that normally hid me from the mountains frigid air didn't seem to touch me today even though the sun was shining so bright the glare off the polished rocks was blinding. Each step blurred my vision more and more. I stared down at my hands for a moment. They were shaking. I was shaking. Wonderful. Everything seemed determined to get in my way today.

If I wasn't careful I would miss one of my hand holds and fall. My exhaustion only did one good thing now. It kept my mind off last night. I had set off before sunrise, eager to get this trip over with, but now I realized I would be lucky to make it back down the mountain before nightfall. My lack of sleep was cutting hard into my strength—a stupid _ignoramus _mistake on my part really. Even a lowlife Genin would have known climbing the largest mountain in the entire ninja world without sleep was a dumb idea! I let out s sigh, resting my head against my hands for a moment. Sometimes, I was a mornon.

It felt like a large rock had tumbled and hit me right in the head; everything was fuzzy, surreal almost. I guess it was for the best. The less I remembered from last night the better off I'd be. Hopefully. As I heaved myself up over another ledge, I realized it didn't give me any time to think of that dream.

I wouldn't even be far enough up the mountain by noon as it was.

I tried dipping more into my chakra to support myself. As soon as I thought about it, I could feel the sudden energy bubbling inside me. My eyes focused and instantly I could make out everything again. I let out a low hum in appreciation. Chakra was heaven-sent. Taking my time, I directed the energy to my hands and feet, enjoying the small rush the feel of my chakra coursing through my veins gave me. I could already feel it starting to slip out of my body bit by bit like glue, letting my stick to the sharply angled rocks. The strain on my body lightened considerable.

A couple yards behind me, I heard the crackle of small rocks falling down. Snapping my head around I turned to see that some rocks had come loose barely even a length below me. Yet as I searched closer, I couldn't make out any signs of a person. There were only the mind numbing sandy rocks that made my head spin. _Strange,_ I mused absentmindedly. I scanned over the rock face again for any signs of a person, but it remained as always. Bare. Sandy and barren.

_Hm, it must have been an animal I guess._

I checked the position of the sun to see how I was doing and cursed under my breath. Any idea of stopping to get some lunch flew right out of my head along with the possible chance of a quick dinner. At this rate, I'd be lucky if I made it up to the altitude Mocuba grew at by dusk._ Stupid mountain and stupid, stupid memories. _I glowered darkly up ahead as I pushed myself faster.

Not even five steps farther up, I heard it again. My head whipped around before I could even place what the noise was, but yet again there was nothing. Only the blank uncaring rocks staring back at me. Quickly I opened my senses to taste the air for chakra; why I wasn't doing it from the beginning I didn't know. _Someone _is_ following me,_ I realized quickly.

Their presence was thick over the rocks and in the air. Whoever they were, they weren't very good at hiding themselves. However, I did have to give them credit on the fact they seemed to stay far enough behind me that I couldn't distinguish the particular scents their chakra put off. The presence seemed vaguely familiar but I had encountered too many people to know who it was solely by their chakra. I'd always relied too much on the smell to think about it. Another mistake.

My eyes traced over the surroundings for a second until I caught sight of the tips of someone's fingers peeking over the side of the rock they were hiding behind roughly two hundred yards downwind. For a second I humored the idea of attacking them and getting it over with. Not many knew I came up here three times a year, and out of the possible, I wouldn't be surprised to find most would take the chance to kill me if they could. Not too many people liked someone who only came in when their loved ones seemed to find their way into the hospital. My reputation did precede me.

Could it be a Seeker? No, I ruled that thought out. Seekers wouldn't hide; they'd just attack. And besides, even if it was a Seeker that would mean they had been watching me for a while now and could have just as easily ambushed me in a more convenient location.

After a moment, I forced myself to keep moving. There was no way this person could keep up with my pace up this mountain. Within ten minutes and they'd be gone.

I turned and focused more of my chakra to my feet and hands and starting scaling up the mountainside, relying on the sticky invisible chakra to hold me against the rock. With chakra, I didn't have to use my fingers or worry about foot holes. As long as my skin met the rock I was fine. My knowledge of the mountainside gave me every other detail I needed to move quickly, keeping me from the countless dead ends and danger zones. Below me, I heard the scramble and curses of the person behind me.

Who would ever want to follow me up here? Or _why_ would someone follow me up here? I looked desperately for an answer as I picked up my pace more. Any faster and they would know they've been discovered, not that they figuring that tidbit of information was my top concern at the moment. It wasn't as if they would be catching me anytime soon. I crouched lower to the rock letting my arms and legs stretch out farther to cover more ground while I continued to think.

If they were after Mocuba this badly, it would have been easier for them to wait until after I had come back down the mountain alone and tired and then steal it. No one in their right mind would risk chasing after me up here unless they were a ninja and able to use chakra. Even then, if they were a ninja they would be smarter. The only other option would be they were after me. My muscles tightened at the thought. I didn't have the strength to fight. _Unless…_

Below I heard a scream. Male. Young. Their voice was high, cutting into my ears. When I looked down, I could see a black tuff of hair as their foot slid off one of their foot holes. Quickly acting I shoved off the rock and twisted my body so I angled down sharply towards them. Right as I met them midair, I pulled one of the kunai from my pouch. Their face twisted up in shock but it was too late. I slammed my fist into the rock making a hole right above their head and flipped my body down in front of theirs until my feet hit against the rock, one leg on each side of theirs, effectively pinning them back against the rock. My kunai pushed hard against their neck.

"Don't kill me!"

Pausing I gasped at the face in front of me. The boys pitch black hair covered his pale skin, but I could just make out the small scar curving down his jaw line. Just like the one another boy had gotten from an accident with a shurkien when he stumbled over my gear late one stormy night. My eyes followed it to the strangely light green eyes staring at the kunai pressed to their neck.

Recognition dawned on me.

"Katsu!" The cheeky boy glanced up at me with a bashful grin. "What are you doing here? I could have killed you!"

He let out a soft laugh making me growl. Quickly I pulled the kunai away from his throat and shoved it back into my pouch. Suddenly I was all too aware of how his body seemed to lean on mine for support and balance against the mountainside and I didn't like the feeling it sent shooting to my chest. I didn't like it at all.

"I guess you caught me Amaya-chan," he grinned. "It took you forever though. I've been following you for almost an hour!"

"Idiot," I cursed, moving off to the side to give him room. He stumbled for a moment without my support, but quickly clung to the rock again like a newborn baby. I glared over at him. "I thought you were an enemy! Don't ever do that again. You're lucky I noticed it was you. What would I do if I ending up getting you killed?"

He looked away sheepishly. If we weren't on the side of a mountain right now, I'm sure he would be palming the back of his neck awkwardly. I let out a sigh as he glanced back over at me. One of these days, this boy really was going to get himself killed if he didn't learn to be more careful. The scar on his jaw proved that enough. A klutz climbing a mountain… Ha! The thought nearly made me laugh.

I hadn't realized I had started to drift off into my own thoughts until Katsu turned and gave me another sheepish look. Looking away, I tried hard to focus on my anger again. I had a feeling I knew what was coming and I was going to have to be pretty made to stick to my pathetic resolve.

"Now that I'm up here… can I come with you?"

"No."

"But—!"

"No."

"Why not!"

"If you wanted to come with me you should have asked before I left," I snapped, focusing my chakra back to my feet and hands. The familiar sticky feeling sent shivers down my spine. Katsu was glaring at me venomously, but with an hour-or-so, I knew the look would be gone. Therefore, I ignored it. "You can't just go around chasing after people when they go dangerous places. If I didn't come down just now, you would have died Katsu. Think hard about that. What would have happened if I didn't? What would you have done?"

He turned back towards the rock again and stared hard at his hands. For a while, it didn't look like he was going to say anything. I let out a sign, but before I could snap at him again, he grumbled, "I would have thought of something."

I tightened my grip on the rock too much and it crumbled. He jumped, but I only shifted myself once again. I was silent for a while letting what I said sink in. All of this was going nowhere, as it always did whenever Katsu and I had our little spats. I could already feel my exhaustion coming back now that my small adrenaline burst was nearly gone. My pack was starting to get heavy.

"Don't do it again."

I started climbing up the mountain, a lot slower than before. If I was going to make it to where I needed to be by the day was up I would need to pace myself from here on out. Or a miracle. Whichever came first. Katsu mumbled something under his breath making me laugh. Instantly his head jerked up.

"Well?" I asked wish a big smile. "Are you coming?"

"W-What?"

I laughed, starting up without him. He would catch up. Katsu had always been one of those people; he would never let anyone outdo him without a fight. Just to toy with him I picked up my speed until I heard him scrambling after me.

"Wait! A-Amaya-chan, hold up!"

Curiously, I peeked over my shoulder to see that he had barely moved up five feet. A vein had popped out on his forehead from the strain. There wasn't any chakra radiating off him for some reason. I tilted my head curiously. _He still can't control his chakra?_ He'd always struggled with chakra control in the ninja academy, but I hadn't thought he was struggling _this _much. Narrowing my eyes, I looked closer, but I still could see anything. That was so strange.

This changed things.

Katsu looked up at me, panting. He slowly pulled himself up until he was even with me. "Why… are we stopping? Did s-something happen?"

Carefully I glanced up. From here, I could just see the brim of the safe ledge about thirty yards up. Once we hit that point, the mountain leveled out enough we should be able to walk. From there I wouldn't have to worry about Katsu too much. I searched calmly for the easiest way up. If he couldn't use chakra to support himself, we could run into some real problems. Now _I _would have to look out for those pesky dead ends and strenuous paths I never paid attention to before. I looked back at him to see he was still waiting for me to say something.

For a moment, a strange bird floating up in the sky caught my attention. Its stark white feathers stood out against the vibrant baby blue sky. I'd never seen such a strange bird. I smiled, watching it circle lazily on the hidden air currents. For some reason it caught me off guard. Usually birds weren't out at this time of day.

Katsu stumbled on a rock regaining my attention.

"We're going to head straight up to that ledge there." I pointed to where I was talking about. "From there it'll be easier up, but for now I want you to go in front. If anything happens I'll be able to help." Adjusting my pack, I looked back up at the rock. I raised my hand through the air to show him the right path, being sure to take the easiest—and sadly, longest—route up. "As long as there are no plants or anything else in the way you should be able to go right from here and then straight up once you get past that weird rock formation."

"T-That's why … we stopped?" he panted.

"Yes."

"Why? Let's keep going—"

"Because I said so."

He grimaced but didn't say another word. Smart. If he did say something, I might be tempted to push him to make him nearly fall again.

"Fine," he grumbled.

I sighed, about to say something when I noticed a small smile on his face. His hands were trembling. _Katsu,_ I murmured to myself. The determination was leaking out of him. After a second, I decided against it and got out of his way. I stared envious at him. He'd always been able to get himself pumped like that.

Despite his sudden burst of energy Katsu still barely moved two feet a minute, if not a little more. I followed silently behind, listening to him curse and chide himself. Right now, I only needed to focus on three things: making sure he didn't fall, using as little chakra as possible, and getting safely up to that ledge. More than once, I had to rush up and help him as he struggled. Several times, we had to retrace our steps in order to get around large boulders jutting out of the rocks or other dangers that I had warned him about. By the time, Katsu finally had to stop to catch his breath my arms and legs were throbbing so badly I could feel the blood pulsating through my veins.

"H-Hey! Hey Amaya-chan!"

Snapping to attention, I jerk startled. With a small surge of chakra, I launched myself through the air up to Katsu, grabbing onto his jackets tightly. He jumped unexpectedly, sending his arms flailing through the air. I growled, being nailed in the face. "Watch it!" I hissed, tightening my grip on his white shirt.

"What the hell are you doing!" he barked.

"You're the one who was shouting at me!"

"So you choke me?"

"I thought you were falling!"

Angrily he smacked my arm away. I glared over at him. "If I was falling I'd be screaming my head off," he snapped, rolling his eyes. Jerking his arm up, he pointed up at the ledge, barely out of reach. "I called you up here because of that! The ledge—!"

His body jerked back suddenly. Instinctively my arm snapped back, gripping his collar again, but his weight jerked me back with him as my hold started to slip. I spun around, eyes wide. And then I wasn't holding him anymore.

He let out a blood-curling scream.

Cursing I kicked off the rock throwing my body after him. My burst of chakra propelled me down after him, hoping and praying he wouldn't hit anything before I made it. As soon as I was close enough, I roughly grabbed his arm, twisting my body back toward the mountainside and slamming my fist straight into the rock. A resounding pop made me cringe followed by a shock of pain shot up my arm, zapping straight down my spine to the tips of my toes. Pain. Burning. Tearing. I cringed, clinging desperately onto Katsu's arm. His hand turned and clutched desperately at the fold of my elbow in return, his grip like iron. Every muscle, every fiber in my arm strained, burning and splitting under his weight.

Wincing I tried glancing down. The small lip I managed to grab onto—or I should say, the lip I managed to _make_—cracked with the movement. Panicking, I forced my chakra out, using it as a lone force to let me cling for both of our lives.

_Damn it._

Katsu swung helplessly back and forth. His hails dug into my arm, but I couldn't let go. Not even feeling each and every time he kicked as he tried to reach the cliff and how every movement sent torrents of pain up my arm threatening to rip it apart piece by piece. The next ledge wasn't for another hundred-or-so yards down. Grimacing, I looked back up.

That same bird hovered over us.

It was weird but for a moment, I almost couldn't feel the pain or the threat looming in the air. For a split second, my heart was calm. There was only that bird. I'd never seen one like it before in my life. For some reason it felt important…

A burst of chakra exploded over everything. Immediately the pain was back. Heart hammering. Blood pumping. I let out a choked cry as my head started to pound. My eyes shot open as the unfamiliar presence leaked down, dripping across the rocks like acid, engulfing everything the invisible cloud touched. With it came the choking smell of mud, filling my lungs with the sensation of dirt and grime. My hand started to slip. Groaning I refocused on my own chakra I was using. The sudden drop in energy was a sucker punch to the gut.

_Damn it,_ I cursed again grinding my teeth. _I can't keep this up._

Katsu started screaming. The realization of what was happening must have finally dawned on the poor boy. I flinched as he started flailing, sending needles and pins digging deep up into my arm. I'd never felt so much pain at once before. "K-Katsu," I stuttered, tightening my grip. His head shot up and for the first time I could see the fear, the breath-stopping life-alternating terror of seeing the horrors and agonies of his fate and not being able to change a single thing about it.

"A-A-Am-Amaya-chan!" His eyes were wide, his body trembling. Struggling he jumped up, grabbing onto my arm with his other hand making me yelp. With tears in his eyes, he held on tighter. "Don't … let g-go. Do-Don't let me f-fall…."

"I-Idiot." I winced as my hand slipped more.

Someone was here. _Shit,_ I cursed, closing my eyes. Something about their chakra, about their very presence even, was wrong. We wouldn't stand a chance if this person chose to attack now. I hadn't been able to do anything before due to Katsu's flailing, but now I had no choice. His erratic breathing sent a pang of terror into my own heart. I had to save him. Now.  
>I stared up at the ledge gauging the distance. Four meters.<p>

Katsu screamed as his hands started to slip.

"Hold on!"

No time.

Wincing I threw back my legs, arching my body and arm. The momentum threw my body forward, twisting Katsu's body underneath me until he was swinging in sync. The rock cracked under the weight. But I couldn't stop. Not now. Katsu cried and kicked. My muscles burned. With one last swing, I pulled my arm back as far as I could, then let go.

Katsu shot up in the air simultaneously as my hand slipped from the rock. Instinctively my body turned, curling until I could touch off a rock barely sticking out far enough for my foot to land. I didn't even think as I launched chakra down through my legs and out my feet. The rock shattered.

I was flying.

When I landed I could hear something crack, but my mind was moving too fast, seeing things too clear to _feel_ the pain yet. I could see each one of the pine needles swaying in the wind on one of the large magnificent trees dotting the mountain and the small insects crawling around on the sandy surface. I could see the specs of dust floating around aimlessly in the air. And I could see someone's legs as they stared back at me with so much precision I could feel them looking through my soul.


	4. Wake Up Call

**AN:** So so SO sorry for taking forever to get this out! Honestly I just sort of kept forgetting. Gasp. I know. What's wrong with me? But I would just get on, read other people's stuff, write some more of my own story and get off the computer lol. If it wasn't for the explosion of favorites I got for last chapter and then a couple awesome little reviews I found when I randomly checked my e-mail I would have never remembered :D Big shout out to _vamp-freak2112, Yuki Hikari, _and _Gir's Punk Doll_ for your love. Made me smile. And kicked my butt into gear so JUST for you guys I'm gonna crank out a few chapters for you today. The wait is also over for those of you who have been asking. Zetsu's here! And he's a jerk! Gasp! Sorry, I'm not into the meet, fall in love and live happily ever after right away. You'll just have to sit tight while they fight through it ;]

_These will be the white side of Zetsu speaking_ and **_this will be the dark side talking_** (which you will find out soon enough)

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 4<strong>

**Wake Up Call**

It might have felt like hours since my eyes closed, feeling and reliving the pain over, and over again of my aching muscles, but when I finally managed to push myself up and open my eyes only seconds seemed to have passed. At first, I could only see blurs. Large blue, green, and tan objects surrounded me, mixing in swirls and blobs of colors and shapes.

After a second, my eyes could focus in on my hands as they supported my upper body. One had bent wrong, jutting off to the side instead of curling down at my middle knuckle normally. It took me a moment to realize it was my ring finger. My pinky snapped sideways at the top joint in a sickening way. That must have been the hand I punched into the rock with to stop our fall. Small trickles of blood dripped down from the cuts and scrapes.

I could see Katsu sprawled out on the hard rock several feet away. From here, I couldn't see any breaks or damage, at least none from hitting the rock after I threw him so hard. His upper body twisted away from me, but nothing was off about the curve of his spine or his hips. A small tickle of blood drooled out over the flat rock by his head, but the rise of his chest told me he was going to be okay. I hoped. He didn't move.

I could see the insects and animals scurrying away and the strange chakra leaking over the area. I could see the clouds darkening and trees shaking.

I could still see the lone white bird flying above.

And I could see a man.

At least, I thought it was a man. He stood erect, shoulders back slightly and feet spread, but at the same time so calm and silent. His frame hid underneath a long midnight cloak, too long in the arms and open at the top. Several large red swirling clouds covered the strange red-trimmed cloak. My eyes followed slowly up his rather tall frame until they reached two enormous leaves sprouting from his encasing his shoulders double the length of his body. What were they like again? That plant—a Venus flytrap?—Yeah, they looked like a Venus flytrap ready to eat whatever lay inside. They twitched open further sending tremors racing up my spine. I wasn't sure what part of this man was more intimidating.

Before I could react, a bone crushing pressure knocked my feet out from under me. My eyes widened in shock as my body was launched backwards followed by the air rushing from my lungs. I hadn't even realized I had begun to stand until I felt my body landed with a smack slamming my head into the rock.

I gasped.

Everything was suddenly on fire. I could feel it racing through me. Slowly, I reached up to the sensitive skin on the back of my head, flinching as soon as my fingers brushed it. There was something red on my pale skin. I looked up in shocked, flinching as I was him move forward. He was so fast.

His shadow hovered over me. The chakra radiating off him covered my brain in a haze making my eyes so heavy. Tree and rocks started to shift, blurring and swirling together. I tried to focus on that circling white bird up above us but I couldn't seem to find it. The world seemed to have flipped, the blinding deep earthy color of the rock and the bright blue sky merging and twisting. His energy cut me off from everything.

Or was it from hitting my head?

Slowly my eyes started to droop. I had to jerk them open again but it was useless. Before I knew it, everything was starting to get dark.

The stranger shifted towards the sun. Light glanced off two pupil-less yellow orbs hidden within the Venus flytrap surrounding his upper body. They were the only thing I could see clearly. Endless yellow-gold in a field of swirling forms. He stared out towards the bird, at least, I think. I couldn't quite tell if I was seeing things or not.

Then he nodded and the bird was gone.

"_Which one do you think it is_?" a smooth deep voice questioned casually. Spindles of chills ran up my spine at the sound of his voice. "_The girl_,"—he glanced over towards me. I could feel my chest tighten as his blank eyes locked onto me too carefully, looking too closely. My skin crawled under his gaze, giving me thoughts and horrors I didn't want to imagine. Then his gaze trailed over to Katsu's motionless body—"_or the boy_?"

_Katsu!_ My eyes shot open. For a second the man looked over making my heart race. I didn't understand what he meant. The only thing I understood was he was talking about Katsu away. Did he want to kill him? Kidnap him? Hurt him? From the poise of his shoulder, the straight line of his chin to the scrutinizing study of his eyes every fiber in my body went rigid.

The man turned. What part of his face I could see his skin was pure white. I flinched back as the Venus flytrap slowly curled open more. My stomach knotted. Bile threatened to rise in my throat as my vision swam with the turn of my head. I watched horrified as he spoke and his lips never moved.

A different rough voice pierced the air, deeper, as rough as sandpaper. "_**No. The boy is too young**_." Instantly the hairs on the back of my neck stood on end. "_**We take the girl; she's the one we need. The boy is of no use to us**__._"

His eyes locked back onto Katsu's helpless body. A cruel smile played on his lips. "_Then let's __dispose__ of him_."

Panicking, I shoved myself up. For a second my head screamed in protest, the ground flipping with the sky once more. My right knee gave out the second I put pressure on it and another startled cry hit my ears. I couldn't even recognize it as mine. Tears filled my eyes, but somehow I managed to stay on my feet. I didn't have to know whom this thing was or why he was here to know what he was going to do. To know that I couldn't let him.

I wasn't sure what I was going to do but as soon as he turned again and looked me in the eye, everything I had planned disappeared. An almost amused looked crossed over his features. I looked in disdain at how much taller he was than me. Even if I had both hands and legs if I had to fight him in any close combat, he would be able to overpower me easily by shear height and weight alone. My eyes drifted over to Katsu. Whatever I did, I had to keep him away from him.

Again, he spoke in the same smooth voice that sent chills racing up and down my spine. "_It seems we didn't hit her hard enough_."

I tensed as he turned to face me completely for the first time. The weight of his gaze was almost unbearable. I recoiled at his appearance. Beneath his choppy olive hair, his face split perfectly down the middle, half the pure flawless white I saw earlier and half-endless solid black. When he spoke again, I watched petrified as only half of his mouth, the _only_ half moved.

"_Then I'll take her out first."_

Instinctively I pulled two kunai out from the pouch on my leg but I didn't have a chance to throw them before he lurched forward. His knee connected with my stomach, cracking something audibly. My eyes widened in pain, but I had yet to feel it yet. Quickly I shoved off with a burst of chakra from my feet putting distance between us. My foot landed near the edge.

I flinched, grabbing onto my ribs as uncensored pain shot through my chest. Already my breathing was haggard. _What should I do?_ I asked myself helplessly. _I don't have any options!_

The mystery man straightened up again looking me right in the eye. I twitched slightly. Without thinking, I launched both kunai directly towards his head but he dodged easy by stepping to the side. _Damn it._

Before I could think he appeared next to me, sweeping his leg across the ground. I flipped forward instinctively, placing my hands on the ground just out of the length of his leg. Quickly I pushed off, sending my foot square into his chest. His hand clasped around my ankle before it could even touch, flinging me into a large boulder, away from the ledge once more. My body crumpled awkwardly around my pack as my back hit, throwing my head hard into the rock. Subconsciously I let out a yelp as something else shattered as I fell on my shoulder.

Suddenly my vision flickered. Dots spread speedily across my eyes in colorful greens and blues. The darkening skies vanished and the ground started to shift under me. For a moment, the man was gone. Gasping for breath, I winced as a stabbing pain shot through my heart. My lungs started to burn. I found myself coughing hard, something rough and scratching tearing up my throat. When I looked down at my hands, I could see blood. My blood.

Slowly I started counting seconds, waiting for something to make sense, for something I could see.

My mind turned sluggishly. _Why doesn't he attack?_

"_Now then…"_ the voice murmured.

A blood-curling scream shook me to the core.

Everything fell silent and my eyes shot open. My heart went cold and my blood ran hot. Instantly my head snapped over to see Katsu pinned helplessly underneath the man's foot. By the looks of it, Katsu had only just begun to stir back into consciousness and I could suddenly see the unnatural bend in one of his legs and the large scrape along his cheek where he must have cut it against a rock. A malevolent smile covered the strange man's twisted face. I could feel my chest tightened and my muscles tense. The man slammed is foot down again making Katsu scream in agony as his body lurched up.

"Stop it!" I screeched.

The ground started to shake and every surged through me. All I could see was Katsu's body crushed under the weight. His face. His pain. The air started crackling around me. Trees shook and loose rocks fell, landing with resounding smacks all around me. My eyes locked on the figure as his head turned ever so slightly.

"_What's this_?" he asked curiously.

With a blank face, he added pressure to Katsu's chest. My rage boiled and the rock cracked under my feet.

"Get the _fucking hell_ away from him!"

Several spikes jutted from the ground faster than I could blink as hot tears fell down my face. The figure defended, forced to leap to the side, the edge of his cloak snagging on one. Hot rage burned through me, fury set to kill.

Winds ragged as clouds flew in from nowhere. Lightning streaked through the sky once more, thunder sounding in deafening explosions through the air. I jerked my arm through the air before he could regain his footing. A torrent of air shot from my fingertips sending a blast of chakra crackling in his direction. His body twisted midair, barely missing it.

Rocks launched towards him each on a missile shooting precisely at its target. The tears in my eyes were blurring everything. The man threw several shuriken and kunai to misdirect each of them, but as soon as one fell to the ground, another took its place.

He was a murderer. He was going to kill Katsu, the last person I had left. The twisted _freak_. My eyes never left his face as he jumped from place to place, narrowly dodging anything sent at him. One false move would be all it took. He deserved to die.

A floodgate broke in my chest. Screaming, I clutched my head as memories and horrors passed in front of my eyes.

_Their faces. Cold. Petrified. The looks in their eyes, burned into their brains as they died. Several men bent over their bodies mangled and torn in unnatural ways, terrible horrors and marks of a gruesome, painful death. I could see it. All of the pain and blood. The death._

The mountain started to shake beneath me as if it suddenly had come to life. I let out a chocked sob, losing my balance back against the bolder behind me, the pain from my body making me contort in on myself. Pine trees and boulders cracked, the winds raging. By the time I looked up, I could see the man running towards me, hands pulled back with several shuriken in each. They whistled through the air as he threw them.

_I could hear their bones breaking and their pleading screams. The anger burning all around. The baby's cries._

Flinching I ducked back but the earth shot up around me. The dull thuds of the shuriken sinking into the rock echoed in my head. Again, he vanished.

I didn't know what was happening. Everything started moving as one. The second I wanted the ground to move, it moved. When I pictured the branches shooting out like spears, they did. Everything became part of me. I could feel it move, hear it think, taste its breath. Even before I consciously knew what was happening I reacted perfectly. The only thing I wanted to do was kill him.

Their voices and deaths screamed in my head.

"_W-Wh-What is this?"_

"_She's a freak!"_

"_Monster!"_

"_Run! Get out of here—"_

It was pounding. Things were too sharp, too vivid. Each detail overloaded my brain, but I couldn't stop. I didn't want it to. Their cries, their blood curling screams were fueling me. I wanted it. I needed to hear it again.

Rock and spikes shot from the ground every place his foot touched. Trees reached out to wrap him in a strangling cocoon. Turrets of air cut through everything any direction he dodged. Already the landscape had changed. Nothing was the same anymore. Somehow, I couldn't touch him.

There was a chocked sob, one that took too long for me to recognize as my own. Desperately I clutched my head, curling into a ball to rid the images in my head.

But they were still there. The dead bodies… and the blood… so much blood.

The once pulsating energy burning through me was fading each second. I could feel it draining out of me. Tears were falling faster. My breathing was choked. I couldn't take seeing Katsu's body lying broken in front of me. His blood pooling out around him. _His _blood.

I felt so … _lost_.

What was I doing? What could I do?

The man appeared behind me with a stabbing pain shooting through my back. My body flew to the edge of the cliff, rolling and bending awkwardly over itself before sliding painfully to a stop. Something popped. Pain shot down my arm. I could already tell my shoulder was out of place, but I didn't have the strength to even get up and do anything about it.

I bit my lip, too proud to give this monster the satisfaction of my scream.

He could go rot in Hell first.

The man stood tense, yellow eyes studying me closely. The Venus flytrap had closed partly concealing him from view some time during our battle—I wasn't sure when. I didn't care now. My face buried down in the loose dirt that had sprayed up in our fight. Only those eyes, those two yellow orbs were visible.

Watching.

Waiting.

My eyes were only for Katsu. I'd landed only an arm's length away from him. It felt like miles. Frantically I tried reaching over, pulling myself to him but I couldn't get my arm to move. Not even my fingers twitched. Instead, all I felt was a blinding pain thudding throughout my entire body. So I could only watch.

A small trickle of blood dripped down from the corner of his mouth as his chest rose shallowly. Mostly likely from a broken rib or two. Possibly a punctured lung. Who knew what that monster stopping on his chest could have done to him. Seeing his crimson blood matted in his hair made me want to cry. The small pool of blood under is head slowly drifted closer and closer to me.

It was too late. Whatever storm awoke in me as gone now. I couldn't protect him anymore. If I ever could to begin with.

Slowly the winds died down and the rocks stopped shaking. All of the trees groaned as their branched trembled one last time, scrapping against each other. Piece by piece everything feel back into place. Piece by piece I fell apart.

To think, this could have all turned out differently if I had only managed to get a little more sleep.

The man stopped closer mumbling to himself in both unique voices. My chest tightened. Quickly I shoved myself up, placing my one good arm around Katsu as a barrier with all of the energy I had left. It was so hard not to show the pain racking through my body. Still, the monster froze.

My chest started to burn, but I knew what I had to do. Painfully I closed my eyes to keep him from seeing my tears. He didn't deserve to see me cry. No one did. I'd never felt so weak before.

"I…" I had to swallow several times before I could continue. My voice cracked. It was coarser than sandpaper and so dead, even to my own ears. "I'll come with you. Just … only if Katsu comes w-with us."

My words hung loosely in the air with an over extended pause. I could feel something hammering against my chest, but it couldn't be my heart. It felt like it had died. My arm started to tremble from my weight. I didn't even know if he even _wanted _to take me with him, but whatever I said must have been close enough. He seemed to be debating amongst himself.

"_Such a stupid request. He wouldn't make it_," the smooth voice complained. I swallowed nervously. Quickly, the rough voice followed, "_**And if not?**_"

My eyes fell. I could feel a weak smile crossing my face. I stared down at Katsu lovingly. Maybe for the last time. I really had let myself become too attached to this boy.

"I'll kill myself."

It would be a gamble, one I was fully prepared to hold up, but it wouldn't matter either way. Life didn't really have a meaning without Katsu. I didn't bother looking up to see his cruel eyes gauging if I would really go through it or not. Those yellow eyes would tell me nothing. I had no idea if my life would be worth anything to him besides the nearly worthless knowledge that they were after me. If I didn't gamble though, Katsu would die. Even if I convinced him not to kill Katsu now, there would always be that chance that he would come back to kill him for knowing too much. It would be a risk I wasn't going to take. The only way to know he was going to be safe would be if he came with me where I could watch out for him.

Without Katsu, I had nothing. Without him, I might as well be dead. What was the point in living if I had nothing in the world? I'd already spent so much of my life like that. I couldn't take any more.

"_He'll come_," he answered finally.

Sighing I let myself relax slightly. My arm was about to give out, but I didn't dare move it. I didn't bother to watch what he was going to do now. If my life were that important to him, he wouldn't be doing anything stupid. Instead, I started to assess the damage to Katsu. I needed to know if he would be alright.

From the looks of it, his sternum fractured and the back of his head was cracked open, along with his broken leg and scrapped face. It could be worse. I tried not to flinch picturing the callous way that monster had crushed him. I focused simply on moving my chakra to my palms as I placed my hands on his chest. It felt like I was drawling out my lifeblood trying to find the energy to keep going. Somehow, though, I had to find a way. For Katsu. My hands started to glow blue with chakra. Tenderly I reached in, mending all of his bones and muscles in coats of my own chakra. Slowly I could feel everything going back into place. To my relief he didn't seem to have any broken ribs or punctured lungs at all.

I was all too aware of the two eyes following my every movement.

I knew the man was getting more from this than I should let him. Right now, I didn't care though. Sacrificing a couple advantages and exposing a few weaknesses would be a price I would pay a million times over if it would save Katsu.

Halfway through the process Katsu's eyes opened. I'd never been happier to see those bright eyes in my life. I noticed with a smile that they were a light olive green; he was happy. He was going to be okay.

"A-Amaya-chan?"

"It's me." Before he could attempt to sit up, I pushed my hands a bit harder against his chest. "Hold still. You had a fractured sternum and took a bad hit to the head. I'm almost done healing you."

His face lit up. "You can do that?"

I nodded.

"Wait!" Unexpectedly he jerked upright, knocking my hands away and spinning around. He cringed noticeably at the pain. Quickly his eyes melted into a dark green. "Where is that bastard! I'm going to kill him!"

When he finally saw him standing perfectly still Katsu lunged forward. "Katsu!" I shouted grabbing his arm with a little too much force. I noticed angrily that those two yellow eyes had moved back to me as if he expected me to stop him, as if it was my job. I realized with even more disdain that it was.

I panted for air at the small effort. Moving like that was a heck of a lot harder than it should have been, but thankfully, Katsu wouldn't drag me across the ground to get to the man. He flinched but I didn't dare loosen my grip.

"I thought I told you to hold still."

"But Amaya-chan—!" He tugged against my grip pulling me forward. The forced movement sent dots shooting across my eyes. On reflex, I doubled over, tearing at my throat. I started coughing uncontrollably, each one more painful than the last. Katsu stared in horror as small drops of blood splattered his face. My blood. "Amaya-chan…"

I let go of his arm to cover my mouth. The sickening feeling made me tremble down to my toes. Faintly I could see Katsu glaring out at the man. I flinched back as I tried to sit up straight. The coughing slowly stopped.

"He did this to you, didn't he?" His voice laced with contempt and anger.

I winced. He shot forward again, but I strained forward catching his hand. I tried forcing a smile, but it turned into more of a grimace. "I thought… I told you to hold still. I need to heal you."

"But—!"

"Katsu."

Finally, he laid back down avoiding my gaze. I let out a sigh of relief, trying to gather my strength again. Half of me was expecting a round of applause for doing my job, but I knew it wouldn't come. The monster's eyes were still cutting deep into me, as if he was saving every single detail of this for later.

Frowning I refocused my chakra and placed my hands back on his chest. It didn't take long before each crack in his bone healed. I did the same process with his leg, warning him when the bone would snap back in place to brace himself and that it would hurt. A lot.

When that was done, I moved silently to place my hands over his forehead. I tuned out everything but his injury focusing on mending the torn skin, first at the back of his head and then along his face, careful not to let it scar.

It didn't take long but the tax on my energy was enormous. Medical ninjustu was the hardest. It was as if I was trying to force too pieces of paper back together without bending them or using glue. I physically had to reach in with my chakra and encourage the bone and skin to repair itself, speeding up the cellular division process. Even thinking about how much chakra it would take to heal myself—I suppressed my shiver.

Katsu grinned as he stretched out, testing his body for any more injuries. Apparently, whatever pain he had was gone. "Now heal yourself and we'll take this guy on and annihilate him!" He bounced up on his feet grinning eagerly for a fight. "Then we can—"

"I'm going with him."

I placed a hand over my chest and began reaching in with what little chakra I had left to assess the damage on my body. Three broken ribs, another two ribs fractured, a punctured lung, dislocated shoulder, broken wrist, fingers, torn rotor-cuff, countless ruptured blood vessels, and many more. No, I definitely wouldn't have enough chakra.

First, I turned towards my lungs. It was no wonder I was coughing up blood. It was a miracle I was able to sit up.

"What! Why? There's no way we're going with that bastard after what he did to you! Look at you! You look like crap!"

"Thanks," I grumbled.

His voice fell drastically as he realized what he said. Quickly he stuttered for something to say. "N-No. No. That's not what I meant! I meant: there's no way I'm leaving with him after he hurt you so much!"

I took a deep breath, hiding my smile. One of my ribs snapped back together me cringe. "You wouldn't understand."

"Like hell I wouldn't!"

Grinding my teeth, I quickly snapped my two broken fingers back into place. The pain ripples up my arm.

I looked Katsu straight in the eye, never breaking my chakra flow. "To live," I answered truthfully even if it was only part of it. I bit my lip as I twisted my knee bap back to the front of my leg. "Hold my arm for a second will you?"

He rolled his eyes, grabbing my upper arm. Pulling against his grip, I twisted my body quickly, shoving my shoulder back in place. The pain was excruciating. All of the muscles and tendons around it protested, shock rocketing through me from the torn parts. Katsu's face twisted in disgust. He stared down at his hand as if I tainted it. "What the—?"

"Just popping my shoulder back into place," I mumbled. "Thanks." Slowly I focused the chakra back into a steady flow and worked on fixing my ribs. I was running out of chakra quickly.

"That's the only reason? There's no way this guy could beat us if we—!"

I cut him off again trying not to raise my voice. "You can either come with me or return to the city. I'm not going to make you go. The choice is yours, but I'm going with him where he is taking me." Against my will, I couldn't force myself to look in his eyes, instead having to make it look as though I was concentrating on what I was doing. It couldn't be further from the truth. I was acutely aware of every move he made. The way he shifted on the balls of his feet, his throat twitching. The way his eyes widened. "It's up to you, but you better choose quickly. Once I'm healed we're leaving, with or without you."

Every second I was trying to make him leave me, I was kicking myself in my head. Why couldn't I shut up? Either way I still had to make him come on his own.

"But why—?"

The two yellow eyes questioned me silently. I could feel them tearing slowly from me onto Katsu. The thought made me tense again, ready to jump up and shield him. Forcibly I made myself turn my attention back onto the next part of me I was healing.

I paused for a second, putting on an emotionless mask as I looked up at him. I met his gaze evenly. "You don't have to come."

His fists tightened by his sides as a blank expression crossed his face. I stared at him sadly. To anyone else it would look like he was angry, but I knew Katsu better than anyone else. I knew what position I had put him. After that one night, Katsu and I had been inseparable. Leaving one another was like cleaving a person in half. We couldn't live without each other.

"Fine," he grumbled. "I'm going, but only to protect you from _that_." With an accusing glare, he pointed towards the man, ignoring the impassive stance he held. "If he so much as touches you again I'll rip off his face."

I pulled my hands away. It wasn't perfect but it would do for now. Cautiously I looked up at Katsu to see the burning flame in his eyes. I'd have to be very careful if I was going to keep him alive on this little "trip." At least he was coming though. I smiled softly. As long as he was with me he's be safe.

I wasn't ready for the suddenly drop in energy. An unquenchable void shot through me nearly knocking me to the ground as my body panicked at the shortage of energy. My whole entire body started to tremble.

"Amaya?" Katsu called, gently touching my shoulder. "You ok?"

"Yeah," I panted, forcing myself upright. We locked eyes for a moment, sharing a secret message. I tried to put on another false smile, this time trapping all the pain behind my eyes. "I'll be fine."

Curiously I looked over at the man, the man that had my fate resting on his shoulders from here on out. The Venus flytrap around his shoulders curled open in response, sending more chills down my spine. His eyes locked back on me. "What's your name?"

He shifted slightly. In the smooth even voice, he stated, "Zetsu."

When I moved to push myself back up into a kneeling position, I froze solid. My eyes were wide, my heart stopped in my chest._ No_, I mourned breathlessly, trembling uncontrollably as I stared down at my hands. At the blood. Katsu's blood.

_What have I done?_

I had his blood on my hands.

Clenching my jaw, I slowly pushed myself off my knees. I ignored the heart-stopping pain protesting my movements and the sluggish reaction time of my own body, too numbed with the pressing aura of guilt and the deathly omen hanging over my head to care. The ground underneath me wobbled for a moment. I reached out for balance. Katsu quickly moved to help but with one look, I sent him away. I couldn't let him touch me. Not knowing that if this went wrong I was the one who made him come. That it was me who sent him to his death.

That it would be me that would kill him…

No, I could do this by myself. Painstakingly slow, I managed to fold my body up, forcing my limbs to move in ways I couldn't imagine were possible in my state and finally up into a somewhat acceptable standing position. If anything, this wasn't the time for being weak. This was the time to show I was more than anyone could stop.

As I bent over and readjusted the heavy shoulders straps of my pack, I could feel every muscle straining. If this was going to be Hell, I'd better start walking.

One-step at a time. For Katsu's sake.


	5. Initial Contact

**AN:** Nothing really to say here really. Review if you can at the end please! Let me know what you think. It's oddly disconcerning not being able to know what parts of this you like and don't 0.o This is just for _Gir's Punk Doll_ and you're amazing awesome promise to review! :P

I still love this re-reading this chapter. It makes me laugh every time. And for those of you who might be worried or concerned I'm just going to make her love him in an abusive relationship or make him just suddenly stop abusing her or something then have no fears! I'm not that type of person :D

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><p><strong>Chapter 5<strong>

**Initial Contact**

I didn't bother asking where we were heading or how long it would be until we got there. Zetsu wouldn't tell us anyway. We were captives now.

I tried swallowing the word but I couldn't quite seem to stomach it. Losing my freedom, I couldn't fathom the idea. Yet here it was. Then again, I wasn't sure if I ever was free to begin with. Even before I was born, Seekers had been hunting me down to kill me. A life like that couldn't count as free. However, there was something final in the word prisoner. To me it sounded like a death sentence.

Zetsu walked a good five feet in front of us leaving us to our thoughts. If it were anyone else, I would have attempted to run but the constant pain each time I stepped on my right leg reminded me I wouldn't be able to get away if I tried. The regular pain everywhere else with every single breathe was enough of a reminder if not. Even if I could, Katsu would still be here. If he still couldn't even climb a mountain without his chakra, there was no way he could outrun someone stronger than me who _could_ use chakra. For now, I was stuck here walking through the forsaken mountains.

At least it was flatter now.

Katsu walked next to me torn between glaring at Zetsu and fretting over my injuries. The blood in his hair had dried now under the sun, which had finally decided to make its appearance now that we were walking through the shade from the trees. With it his blood on my hands had stained, reminding me solemnly it is my fault he's here in the first place. Each time I glanced over, I could feel my heart skip a beat imaging that something had happened. That he was hurt and dying.

But he wasn't.

Thankfully.

I tried keeping my gaze as straight ahead as possible, but it was difficult with him asking if I was okay continuously. Now more than ever I wished I had simply had the strength to heal myself completely instead of the crappy patching I had done. I hated to see him worrying about something as small as this. It wasn't as if I had left any life-threatening injuries anyway, only the torn rotor-cuff and the torn muscles around my knee along with the several ruptured blood vessels I never got around to healing. Both I could deal with that for now.

We walked endlessly through hidden paths cutting through the mountains. Here the pine trees were too thick to gauge the time. It was more like walking directly into a jungle than mountains. If it wasn't for the sharp slope reminding me we were still travelling up, I could have believed it. Everything was green. Miles and miles of green. More than once my eyes had started to droop, mixing the ground with the sky. I tried to focus on the strange plant-like fixture that was leading us forward, but I found that I couldn't even focus on something as weird as that. Each time my exhaustion finally took a hold of me, I found myself jerking awake.

Katsu suddenly smacked my arm startling me. I snapped my head over towards him. He blushed awkwardly. "Mosquito," he explained.

Zetsu glanced back halfway interested, but he quickly adjusted his gaze when he found us both staring at him. Katsu snorted making me sigh. Our fixed gazes didn't seem to bother Zetsu at all. Quite the opposite in fact, he seemed to gain a twisted sense of pleasure from the knowledge we wanted to make him spontaneous combust. The only sensible reason for him to pay attention to what we were doing was to make sure we weren't scheming something.

Now _that_ idea almost made me laugh.

I had to admit there was something very peculiar about Zetsu besides the obvious Venus flytrap growth around his shoulders and the unusual separation of his body. There was something off about him that drew my eye. It was the way he looked at things, I decided, after staring at him for so long. He seemed to look through things, so close he could probably see every detail, every defining feature in everything. It wasn't a normal gaze. Never once speaking. Just … watching.

Finally, I couldn't stand the silence, not when there were so many questions racing through my head. "Are you working for the Seekers?"

Katsu gave me the funniest look the same time Zetsu halfway turned his head, as if he was contemplating whether it was worth the effort to actually turn and look over his shoulder.

"_**No**_."

I frowned at the simple answer, but chose not to push it further. After all, if he wasn't working for Seekers, and he obviously wasn't a Seeker—considering he didn't just kill me when he could—then I didn't know what to expect. The chances were he was from an enemy village, sent to capture me and bring me back for interrogation or slavery. I frowned at both ideas.

When it was apparent that Zetsu wasn't going to say any more, Katsu inched closer to me his eyes wide with curiosity. I groaned, pinching the bridge of my nose before he even asked his first question. "What's a Seeker?"

_Curse my stupid big mouth._

"People I hope you'll never meet," I answered darkly.

Katsu blanched, but if anything, his eyes only seemed to open in more wonder. "What do you mean? Why not? Have you ever met one before?"

I rubbed the back of my neck awkwardly as I contemplating a satisfactory answer. No doubt, Zetsu could hear us. Any good ninja could so I just had to be very careful at how I worded everything now. A headache was already forming.

Eventually I decided on, "Yes I have met one. More than one actually. They're … people who kill just to kill."

Revolution crossed his face along with too many other things for me to recognize, but I knew he had the smallest idea now of the type of people they were. I hoped and prayed he would never be able to grasp how truly evil they were.

"But—"

"Even a baby," I whispered.

Katsu's eyes glazed over in memory and I could only watch as the color of his eyes melted down into a deep ocean blue.

Then the silence continued.

My pack was getting heavier and heavier by the second. It made my back itch furiously where it rubbed against my shirt. I weakly adjusted the shoulder straps, but it only made it more uncomfortable. A sharp pain shot up my side when I tried to bend over to adjust it again. _Damn it,_ I cursed.

"**We're stopping up ahead**_,_" Zetsu announced. His voice was so faint I could barely hear it over the soft breeze, but the hairs on the back of my neck stood on end again as if they were obligated to do so every time he spoke. He paused long enough to look back at us. His golden emotionless eyes met my curious gaze with such intensity I could feel the back of my knees quiver, ready to give out. What he said next could only be directed to me. "_There's a waterfall up ahead. We will stop there until you recover. __**So hurry up**__._"

I cringed, glancing down. Even if it was obvious I was slowing us down— it honestly, surprised me Zetsu had even let me walk this far considering how sluggishly we were progressing—I hated to think that I could be so weak that he would actually _say_ something about it. Katsu growled next to me, ready to complain but I shook my head. His eyes snapped in my direction; I could feel it even looking down.

"Amaya-chan?"

I bit back the pain for a moment, adjusting my pack. I'd have no choice but to ask Katsu a favor when we finally stopped. "Let's go."

Up ahead, as Zetsu somehow knew, there was a clearing open out to a large waterfall pouring out between two rocks into a large basin of water. The water moved smoothly down several small streams out into the trees before finally disappearing from view. The thunderous roar played like music to my ears. One large rock shot up near the middle of the basin like a mounted thrown, but the rest was wonderfully flat, only giving way to the white ripples of water pounding down against the rocks. If I had stumbled across this place on my own, I'd bask in the beauty. However, right now, the scene held no wonder to me at all. I was too preoccupied with the straps cutting into my shoulders and the pain rippling through every part of my body to notice.

I turned away towards the tree to look for some place I could rest easily. A very large apple tree caught my eye. "Katsu, can you come help me for a moment?" I asked as I gimped over.

His head perked up drawing Zetsu's attention. "Sure Amaya-chan!" He ran over and stood in front of me as I slid gratefully down against the base of the tree. He gave me a cheeky grin that brought a small smile to my face. He was always so ready.

"What is it?"

I stole once glance over his shoulder in Zetsu's direction before lowering my voice. "Can I borrow some of your chakra?"

He looked confused for a moment. "You can do that?"

"Yes."

"Oh! Then sure!"

Smiling, I motioned for him to place his hands over mine, which he did with a childish wonder. I wouldn't borrow much. No, just enough to make most of the pain go away. By the looks of it, he couldn't quite control his own chakra flow yet so I'd have to do it for him for now, but it wouldn't be a problem. I'd studied the chakra network long enough to know without a doubt where all of the potential floodgates were meant to interconnect our systems.

"This is going to feel a little weird ok?" I warned, watching attentively to see if he had any hesitations. "Promise I'm not going to do anything bad though, so don't worry."

There wasn't a single doubt in his eyes. "No worries. I'll be fine."

"Good then, hold out your hands for me please."

He complied, only giving me a funny look when I intertwined our fingers.

Smiling, I gently eased some of my chakra into the base of his palms, letting it move naturally up towards his fingers to where I needed it. I only sent in a little, just enough to open up his chakra points.

Only very few people could actually use their chakra while it was still inside someone else's body. Anyone could inject someone's body with chakra, but the only people known to be able to use it well died in the Great Ninja War. I was the only one left that I knew of who could do it. My father had taught me all about it just before he died…

Refocusing I turned back to Katsu, shoving all depressing thoughts aside. For a moment, he squirmed. Feeling someone else's chakra inside his body must have been a weird sensation after all. It was like feeling someone else's life force inside of you, connected with the very thing that supported them and gave them life. It was one of the most intimate things a person could share with someone. The second I opened the chakra point at the center of his hand a surge of energy flooded through me. Tingles ran up and down my arms as the pulsation of energy shot up towards my heart, racing and swirling throughout my entire body. I couldn't help but laugh.

His eyes widened in panic as he pulled back. The energy flow immediately cut off with the break in skin connection. Without his bubbling energy gallivanting through me, I felt … empty. "What's wrong?"

"What's wrong? What do you mean 'what's wrong?'" he sputtered in disbelief. "I should be asking you what's wrong! There was their weird sucking feeling like it was sucking everything out of me and before I could even ask what it was you started _laughing_! So what do you mean 'what's wrong?'"

"Katsu, relax!" I gasped, looked anxiously over his shoulder. Two glowing golden eyes stared back. Zetsu didn't even have the courtesy to glance away from his spot sitting underneath a distant tree. "Shh, calm down. You're yelling."

Katsu gave me an incredulous look, throwing his arms around. "I have every right to yell!"

I couldn't help it. I laughed at the look on his face.

"What! What are you laughing at? This isn't funny!"

"Nothing Katsu," I grinned. Before I could even explain, he opened his mouth to bombard me with more questions. Thankfully, I had a hand. "It's just that you're chakra just feels the exact way I pictured it to."

"What?" he murmured. Slowly my words sank in. He looked down with a small smile on his lips before holding his hands back out to me. A small blush had covered his face in his embarrassment. "Oh, sorry. I uh, didn't know chakra could feel like anything."

Suddenly I became all too aware of Zetsu's eyes boring into me. He shouldn't have heard that. I groaned squeezing my eyes shut.

_Why do I insist on digging myself a hole?_

Most ninjas couldn't tell the differences between chakra, or use their chakra to trigger anything in others bodies besides healing. Only sensory ninjas could. I only knew a few out of the thousands of people I had ever met in my life who could do anything as I could, barely enough to count on one hand. Sensory ninjas were valued high among the ninja nations. Yet, there were so many things that even sensory ninja couldn't do that I could. If Zetsu found out I _wasn't_ a sensory ninja yet I could still tell the difference between chakras, there'd be hell to pay. He'd make try to get me to do something I couldn't. What I did was something my father had taught me and only me.

Sometime while I was thinking, I must have accessed Katsu's chakra again because out of nowhere I felt the pleasant explosion of energy racing through me. The energy flowed through me steadily, healing everything I couldn't have healed earlier. It felt good, the extra energy running through my core body. I pulled myself just far enough from my thoughts to keep a close watch on how much chakra I let past. No need to scare him anymore than I already did.

Suddenly Katsu's eyes widened. A winded sound escaped his lungs.

"Oh no."

Reflexively I snapped the bond between us, and all of the swirling energy inside of me died instantly, withering away to nothing. Katsu doubled over, his eyes wide and unseeing.

I jumped up a bit too quick sending a last trundle of pain up my leg, the only injury I had yet to heal completely. The pain made my chest tighten, but I shoved it away, clasping Katsu's face in both of my hands. Panicking I forced him to look me in the eye. "Katsu, look at me!" I shouted trying to break over his state.

His pupils widened and shrank blindly as his body started to tremble. He was going into cardiac arrest. His convulsions came next. I bit my lip, as his mouth started moving silently.

"Damn it, look at me!"

Sparks and juts of chakra started flying through his body. The invisible spurts would be unnoticed by anyone else, but I could still feel the last reminisce of his chakra circulating through my body. It lurched painfully towards my heart flipping my stomach to my toes.

"_Katsu!_"

His body froze for a second as his chakra converged in one spot. Sweat beaded down his forehead. Skin cold as ice. _I'm losing him!_ I realized in panic. I did the only thing I could think of.

_Slap!_

The nothing.

Only the dull roar of the waterfall breaking against the rocks.

Silent.

His eyes widened for a split second before flashing a light blue again. It took the burning in my lungs to realize I needed something, and I blamed the lightheaded-ness on lack of oxygen. Really, I knew breathing had nothing to do it. My heart was still pounding furiously in my chest even with Katsu spluttering to regain his own breath. I'd almost lost him.

Gently, I patted his cheek, helping him come back to me through the visible haze and cloudiness in his eyes. I didn't even realize I had held my breath until then. I let out a painful smile as his eyes gradually focused back on me. The cold chill hadn't quite left his skin yet.

"Easy Katsu, take it easy now. Everything's going to be ok." Patting his back softly, I sent in what little chakra I had of my own in small soothing waves. "You're fine now. Just take it easy. There you go. Slow now… easy."

Ever since I could remember, Katsu had always had these little panic attacks. Normally too much strain or too many emotions at the same time caused them, but every now and then one would hit him without any warning. I didn't even want to think of what could have caused this one. I must have taken too much energy. He probably still wasn't used to the strain on his body if he couldn't even access most of his chakra himself. When I took even only a little of his chakra his body must have had a negative reaction to the unusual loss of energy. I must have sent him into shock.

Frowning, I pulled him tight into a hug to hide my face. I couldn't let him see me like this. I could still feel my own heart racing. Right now, I knew I had to be strong. I had to show him the way. Thankfully, he was too delirious to notice.

"W-What happened?" Katsu mumbled, pulling out of my grasp.

Instantly my face was blank. I knew regretfully that he could see my emotions boiling in my eyes; it would be unlike him to miss it, but I wanted to kick myself for causing his attack. It was better off if he couldn't read any of me at all than to show him something that might strain him more.

He didn't remember what happened at all. I'd expected as much. Usually he could never remember what happened until days after—a small case of amnesia, probably from the emotional damage.

Before he could ask what was wrong I brushed a strand of loose hair out of his face and forced a fake smile, letting my thumb trace circles on his cheek.

"You had another attack," I murmured softly. "Are you feeling better now?"

"Y-Yeah…."

He looked around for a moment still feeling dazed. When he tried to stand his body swayed dangerously. Another layer of mist shrouded his eyes shortly, but just as I moved to reach out it was gone again and he regained his balance. It seemed to confuse him seeing the waterfall basin in front of him as if he had somehow forgotten where we were. He turned back to me.

"Do you still need more chakra?"

I guess he didn't forget everything.

"No." The answer was too quick. I could tell. He could too. Looking him in the eye, I tried forcing another smile.

No, I wouldn't use any more of Katsu's chakra. I wouldn't be able to live with myself if I hurt him again. I was already dragging him along with me to be a prisoner to unknown men in an unknown area. Anything else I could probably do to him would—no, it was best if I didn't bother him anymore.

"I'm fine," I assured. "Don't worry about me. Why don't you take a quick nap? You're going to need your strength for where ever we are going after letting me use so much of your chakra. I'll look over you."

Again, he looked around. I became all too aware that Zetsu had disappeared for the moment. Shackles rose along the back of my neck. I quickly shook it off. Best not to think about the things I wouldn't want to know about either way. I was just about to turn back to squandering what little energy I had left on healing my knee when Katsu spun back around. I knew the glint in his eyes instantly. They had faded back into a dark green.

"Why the _hell_ are we following this guy? I know that he must be pretty strong, but Amaya-chan—!"

"Katsu!" I hissed cutting him off, but he ignored me.

"He's gone! Why don't we just slip away? He'll never know where we went and we can go back home. That … _thing_ creeps me out! We don't need him—"

"Don't—!"

"Fine then," he growled. Folding his arms across his chest, he glared. "Can't you just tell me why we're going with him at least?"

I clenched my fist looking down at the side. It was still too fresh in my mind how strong this thing really was. Even with my leg healed, there would be no way we could escape without him finding out and stopping us. I was all too aware of Zetsu's presence up in a tree as he watched us closely. The sickly raw smell of earth drifting down all around his presence was enough to make me nauseous. The monster probably wasn't going to bother interfering when he knew it was up to me to keep Katsu in line. After all, if I slipped up Katsu died. It wouldn't affect Zetsu either way. If anything, it would probably make out journey a lot shorter.

"Do you remember that story I told you about the mouse and the two rats when you were a little kid?"

"What?"

I sighed wearily. "Katsu, please. Do you remember?"

"The one where the rats break in go to eat all of the mouse's food but then he tells them that—"

"Yes!" I interrupted. I stole a peek back up at the tree. There was nothing. "That one. Now just remember what the mouse did and we'll be fine, ok?"

"But Amaya—?"

"Go over and sleep Katsu." I chose my words carefully. "There's no reason to run. I'll take care of everything."

"Then tell me why we're following him!" he shouted defensively.

I leaned forward off the base of the tree and clenched my fists, looking at him straight in the eye. "I don't know Goddamn it!" He recoiled slightly. Instantly I regretted yelling. I leaned back, staring at the flowing water. "I don't know…"

"But—"

Zetsu jumped down into the clearing silencing him before I could. Quickly I checked his expression, hoping for some sign to show his intentions, but it was impossible. There wasn't a doubt in my mind he had come to ask me about whatever code I was trying to give to Katsu, it would only be natural, and I hoped and prayed I'd be able to keep it a secret. The Venus flytrap peeled back slowly exposing his full face. The hairs on my arms stood up instinctively. Katsu glared venomously, but with one look by me, left mumbling under his breath. Zetsu's ominous gaze shifted to me.

"_**What did you tell the boy?**_"

Subconsciously I straightened up. "I was reminding him of his favorite children's story when he was younger, where the main character saves his house from two villains," I answered truthfully.

"_And you think that's going to help? How pathetic!"_ his smooth voice chortled. My lip curled up is disgust at the sound. His other half—if that was what it was anyways—silenced himself. "_**You still require chakra**_," the gruff voice stated. He stepped closer, eyeing me. There wasn't anything flattering in his gaze at all as it traced over my body. Not even like the disgusting feeling of men looking where they shouldn't. No, his gaze was much more calculating, sinister. Almost as if he was breaking me apart piece by piece in his head and analyzing every single detail about me.

I shifted back instinctively under his gaze, but refused to look away. Without another word, he crouched down to my level and held out his left hand as if he were going to offer me a handshake. I shielded my face, expecting a kunai as I shoved my back hard into the tree, but he froze. Slowly he turned his hand over, showing that he had no weapon.

I sighed, momentarily letting myself relax. This man made me too tense, too insecure. Any second now, I felt like I was going to snap and do something idiotic, _more_ idiotic than what I've already done.

I stared down at the chalky color of his long fingers, feeling the bark of the tree carve into my back more than ever. We locked eyes for a moment.

The only way he would ever offer to let me mess with his chakra system was if he saw the tender way I cared for my leg when I leaned up to grab Katsu earlier. He probably wanted to know how I was using someone else's chakra. That way when we got to wherever we were going he'd be able to relay all of the information he'd gathered to his higher up and use everything against me. There would be no other reason for him to offer me his chakra otherwise. I was his enemy. His prisoner.

"_We won't be able to travel far with you injured, __**baka**__."_ My shoulders tensed as dozens of chills ran up my spine as he switched voices so casually. His eyes didn't cease to miss my reaction. The arrogant glint in his eye nearly made me sick.

Still, I couldn't afford to miss the importance of his words. Wherever he was taking us, he seemed to want to get there as soon as possible.

Did that mean if I stalled long enough that they wouldn't need me anymore?

Was he going to kill us afterwards?

Would he kill Katsu first if he didn't think I was travelling fast enough?

I glanced down at his hand on final time before hesitantly moving to take it. I jumped as a small shock danced between our fingers. When I glanced up his eyes didn't gave away any of his thoughts. Probably from my overactive imagination no doubt. His hands were cold to the touch.

The idea of attacking him right now flashed across my mind. It would be so easy just to reach in with my chakra and annihilate his chakra network. If nothing less, I could attack his nerves, using his arm as a communication line to scramble his spinal nerves and leave him helpless. Then Katsu and I could make a run for it. Head back down the mountains into the city where he couldn't track us and then—I didn't know what then. Was there even anywhere I could go after that? Would anyone take us, two unimportant strangers from another village?

I shoved the thought away quickly. After fighting him once, I could tell nothing I could do right now would affect him enough to get away, not unless I left Katsu behind. Alternatively, the more realistic side was I would have to get Katsu to leave _me, _the one who couldn't even walk straight. Heaven knows he would never do that.

I waited a second to see if he would insert his own chakra into my body or he wanted me to take the chakra I needed myself. Time ticked by slowly, each second becoming more awkward holding this murderers hand. It didn't seem to bother him any, if anything giving him more time to scrutinize me. Zetsu looked at me with an empty gaze. His pupil-less golden eyes made my skin itch uncomfortably.

Cautiously I inserted a small amount of chakra to push open the chakra point at the base of his palm. With a gentle push, it cracked open letting a small stream of his chakra leak into my hand, much smaller than Katsu's, more controlled and monitored. His hand snapped back instantly.

I cowered back, reflexively tensing my muscles for a form of attack.

None came.

Zetsu gave me a curious stare as he flexed his fingers. I watched, equally curious while he tested all of his muscles and reactions. If what he found wasn't enough, he reached out to the side. The second I felt him drawing his chakra to his palm I move back, determined to put a safe distance between us. _An attack!_ For doing what he said, I couldn't believe it.

Sadly, I didn't move more than a couple of inches before I found my back smashing, once again, painfully into the rough bark of the apple tree behind me. Zetsu spared me one glance. Then the chakra in his palm released and …

I waited, eyes clamped closed.

And waited.

And waited.

Hesitantly I peeked through my lashes to find Zetsu watching pointedly as a small vine twisted up from the earth, growing and forming beneath his fingers. _A jutsu?_ I watched fixated as the plant danced up around his fingers in swirls of deep vibrant greens and soft twists of fluffy leaves. _So he was testing to see if he could still complete jutsu. How … anticlimactic._ Once the plant was about half-a-foot tall, he stopped turning back with I could only describe as an annoyed look on his face, or the white half or his face at least.

It looked like he thought I really had tried severing his chakra network. I didn't dare tell him how stupid the idea actually was. There would be no benefit in it for me if I severed his chakra flow in only one hand. Since he could obviously perform jutsu without the proper hand signs, it would really only hinder me, the one who would lose chakra in the process. I would have to sever his chakra flow somewhere closer to the heart to gain some advantage if it came to a fight. I had already thought of all of the possible attacks that wouldn't seem suspicious and all of them ended in me losing.

I wasn't about to tell him that of course. What he didn't know didn't help him in my book, and what didn't help him didn't hurt Katsu and me. Any of my abilities he overestimated now could come in handy later. I would let him think I could do everything in the world.

"_Continue._"

After reassuring himself, he didn't hesitate to hold out his hand again. I shifted slightly, disturbed by his perseverance. I placed my hand back on top of his before looking him in the eye. It was unnerving not having a pupil to look at.

"Hold still."

He didn't bother replying, but instead continued to scrutinize my face carefully. I closed my eyes and tried to ignore his gaze while I opened his chakra point again. His gaze was too heavy to ignore.

Goosebumps shot across my skin as a dark, controlling chakra seeped into my body. I gasped feeling the cruel intent boiling inside of it as it burned through my veins, scorching everything inside of me in a malevolent energy surged through me. It was so strong. The second it met my own chakra I could feel it shifting inside of me, exploring me like a probe. It was so much heavier than Katsu's, thicker and more condensed and controlled. I directed it quickly to my leg. Everywhere it touched; it felt like it was setting me on fire, running through my very veins like shards of ice.

I'd borrowed chakra from hundreds, if not _thousands_ of ninjas throughout my life and none of them ever affected me like this. None of them even came _close_ to this.

I cut of the connection as soon as I felt the muscles around my knee re-knit completely. His chakra didn't give me the same feeling Katsu's had. There were no tingling sensations or soothing feelings as it washed over me. Zetsu's chakra was dark. It reminded me of mud, filling my lungs and suffocating me in the nasty taste of dirt. My heart was racing as the new chakra circulated through my body. It wasn't right. My lungs were burning. Everything was on fire.

He pulled back instantly and stood up, looking around for Katsu. His eyes locked on his form, napping under the shade of another apple tree. After a second, he turned back to me.

"_Get some rest. We will leave after lunch __**whether you've recovered or not**__. _**We cannot afford to waste any more time here**_."_

At the mention of food, my stomach stirred uncomfortably at the very apparent smell of apples wafting down from the tree behind me. My cheeks burned red when his eyes flickered from my stomach to my face with that same annoyed look.

"_Hurry up onna._"

Zetsu gave me a final look before heading down towards the water. It didn't even look as though he cared at all one way or another about what I did, as long as it didn't interfere with our progress. After all, why would he? To him, Katsu and I were just two specs of dirt on the path he trampled down every day.

I watched him closely hoping and praying to find something wrong with the monster. From first glance, there wasn't anything wrong with him. His shoulders were tight and pulled back with a sickly perfect posture as if he had never slouched a day in his life. There wasn't a lot of play in the natural sway of his arms to show carelessness. Every movement seemed monitored. Practiced almost. There was a waterfall-like flow from the twist in the Venus flytrap all the way down to his toes. Despite the large plant surrounding him, he was perfectly balanced. Graceful almost. Like a panther.

There had to be some weakness. No one could be as flawless as that. It was inhuman. Any weakness. Any weakness at all. I searched desperately for one, but there was a better chance of cracking a rock under my gaze.

He wasn't a Seeker though. I would be fine as long as he would never be like one of those demons. Possibly.

Getting away was going to be much harder than I thought.

Another insistence growl brought the color back to my cheeks. Hiding my face, I pulled off my pack and dug for the small supply of food I had packed: Mocuba roots, two small homemade loafs of bread, and some cheese. It could hardly pass as filling food, but it would have to do. By the looks of it, everything I had packed would become extremely vital in the near distant future. If I'd known I was packing for a permanent stay as a prisoner, I might have rethought the importance of certain things. No doubt, my weapons will be confiscated the second I stepped through the doors of our final destination so it wouldn't really matter whether or not I had brought them. To think, I had been lugging around all that dead weight for nothing….

I got up grabbed a couple of apples to accompany our small meal and went over to Katsu. His eyes closed lightly, giving him the child innocence that I loved. I couldn't help but smile as I knelt down beside him. "Katsu," I murmured, rubbing his shoulder slightly.

He finally came around and sat up with a strange look. From the corner of his eye, he stole a glance at Zetsu. "I tauwht ew wanted me ta nap," he grumbled through a yawn.

"I do, but you need to eat before we leave." I handed over a loaf of bread and a slightly larger portion of the Mocuba roots and cheese; he was a growing kid after all. He could probably use the extra energy more than I could. I was used to harder conditions. "We can save whatever's leftover for the next time we stop. I picked you an apple too."

"Oh." He sat up easily. His eyes traveled back over to Zetsu. "What are we going to do about _that_?"

I looked out at Zetsu for a moment, taking in his foreign contrast against the water. Hundreds of thoughts were running through my mind. Yet at the same time, I couldn't think of anything. It was as if every logical thought in my brain had vanished without a trace, leaving me with only the grinding gears in my head trying to turn.

"For now, go with him. Then we'll see what we should do."

We didn't talk again as we ate. Both of us silent focused on our small lunch under Zetsu's careful watch. This might be our last decent meal for a long time.


	6. Digging My Grave

**AN: **I told you people I had been writing my story. Here's another chapter that I couldn't get out yesterday because my sister kidnapped me and stole me to go see a movie, not that I'm really complaining. I'll never give up an oppertunity to get out of the house! But anyways... nothing like a little more Zetsu hating on Amaya action. And ohhhlala!

Do I see a little ATTRACTION going on here? (Yes I'm lame. Proud of it!) And what's going to happen with Katsu? I love that boy. He's probalby one of the funnest people to write because he get's mad at practically _everything _and is a total goof. But you won't find out until you read it ;D

Thanks so much _Gir's Punk Doll_ for your ... interesting comments lol. Can't help it. They make me laugh and grin like an idiot. Most of the time I have no life either so no worries there. You are devoted here. I'm excited to see how many reviews I can get out of you. Muwahahaha! *cough cough* I mean thanks so much. You're a doll ;)

And also a thanks to _glitterhorn._ Glad you love the story. Tuche! Zetsu deserves some more love than he gets. Which is exactly why this is my first fanfiction and I chose him ~3 Hopefully I can keep it awesome for you!

**Disclamer:** (since I'm pretty sure I've forgotten one up til now. Gasp) If you honestly think I would be awesome and cool enough to creat an entire world where ninjas kicked but, weird people lived, and a boring day is killing like 5 people... ehhh ... I'll let you decide :) It's only mine if you don't know it first!

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><p><strong>Chapter 6<strong>

**Diging My Grave**

Sickening snaps and cracks erupted through the air, snapping me out of the light sleep I had finally fallen into what felt like only seconds ago. Branches and bones snapping and skin tearing, I couldn't bring myself to look as the horrific sounds interrupted my nap. Chills ran rampant across my body. My stomach churned my back tensing.

Then just as quickly as it started, the sound was gone.

There was a gigantic splash, then nothing.

"What the bloody hell was _that_!" Katsu started.

Straightening up from the awkward way I had fallen asleep against the tree I turned to see Zetsu had vanished underneath the water. To my immense curiosity, I noticed there was a rather large patch of vivid blue dragon snaps sprouting along the basin's shore. They definitely hadn't been there before. Dragon snaps didn't grow in high altitudes like the Sayon Mountains. In fact, they didn't grow in this part of the nation at all. They were only common in the Land of Water, and that was nearly 2,000 kilometers from here. I couldn't seem to pull my eyes away from the soft curves of each petal. I could have sworn those weren't there before…

Katsu jarred me from my thoughts by mumbling something about losing his appetite and I couldn't help but roll my eyes. I focused too much on the flowers to care.

_Where did that thing go?_ I asked myself loosely.

Just as soon as I had thought it, Zetsu's body emerged from the other side of the rock, dripping wet as he climbed up out of the water and pulling my eyes back up from the dragon snaps. The first thing I noticed nearly sent my heart stopping. My eyes widened.

The Venus flytrap was gone.

There wasn't a single trace of it anywhere. The fine line that split between the black and white half trailed down to his waist, but both of his legs remained white. I paused a second, confused at the strange coloration of his skin, but I never got the chance to think about it before he shifted. For the first time I could really look at him, I could see the strong definitions and the chiseled angular curves of his muscles all the way from his broad shoulders to the slim lithe curve of his waist. Every part of him was toned and deadly, the perfect killer. Out of reflex, my eyes trailed over the strong curve of his shoulders, down the detailed contours of his chest and abs, straight along the cut lines that made my eyes flow to where the two angled lines might meet under his shorts, following the rivets of water as they curved around his muscles leaving glistening little streams all over his broad muscular chest. With the way the sun glinted off his smooth skin, I lost myself admiring the hard muscles only years upon years of hard work could accomplish. A twisting flush grew in my stomach looking at him. His short messy olive green hair dripped wet around his face, outlining a strong straight nose and angular cheekbones down to his hard-defined jawline.

I couldn't help but admit: he was breath taking.

Now I could see how he managed to dodge all of my attacks so easily. My chest tightened painfully. That was the look of a killer. That monster was built to destroy something. Or some_one_.

His eyes turned towards me feeling my gaze. I could feel the sickly way his eyes attached to whatever he turned towards, analyzing and scrutinizing it down to every detail. It made my skin crawl.

I turned away not sure why I suddenly felt so flush and stared back at the ground at my feet. There was no way we would be able to get away with him looking like—well, _that_. After a second, I decided to put the rest of Katsu's bread and cheese back in my pack seeing as he apparently wasn't hungry anymore.

"Why don't you go and take a bath too Katsu?" I asked off-handedly. I could feel his head snap over in my direction.

"You want me to do _what_?"

With a sigh, I turned back to him and nodded towards the water. "Even though I don't like him either, it's probably a good idea to take a bath now. Who knows when we'll find this much water again. Besides, I don't want to smell you the entire time we're walking."

"Hey!"

"Well it's true."

Katsu's eyes turned a deeper blue nearly making me smile. I had to turn away to keep from laughing at his pout. After a couple of seconds, he finally caved in, meandering off while grumbling under his breath like the little boy he was. I smiled fondly, watching him inch closer to the water, chuckling silently at the weary look he kept flashing in Zetsu's direction. Zetsu however, seemed to care less about him. He had already stood up again and dove elegantly—nearly silently—back into the water.

I took my time putting everything away, making careful precise folds in the cloth I was wrapping up the bread and cheese in. Having our food spoil without knowing when I would be able to get some more was the last thing I had in mind. Besides, I wasn't too eager to get in the water with that killer either.

When I stood up and put pressure on my leg, I was happy to find I didn't experience any more pain. With a smile, I tried shifting all of my weight onto it and twisting around to see how far I could push myself before my muscles protested, but no matter which way I moved my muscles responded naturally. I took care bending around, touching my toes and crouching low to stretch my limits. Taking a quick glance to make sure Zetsu hadn't resurfaced yet I pushed off into a couple quick flips and kicks, happy to feel the regular tense and pull. There weren't any more signs of pain at all. A big grin crossed my face. Maybe it was a good thing after all that Zetsu let me use some of his chakra, no matter how repulsing it was. Perhaps I should have used more, drained him down a bit and given us a better chance at escaping.

Crap. I mentally kicked myself in the face. _Didn't think about that_. I'd have to try that next time.

"Come on Amaya-chan!" Katsu shouted. I turned around to see that he had already stripped down to his boxers and was waiting impatiently for me by a tree far from the water. He stole a glance over his shoulder at the sound of Zetsu breaking through the water again; jumping when he was suddenly heaved himself back up on the rock. I tried hard not to laugh.

"Nee-chan!" he whined.

My eyes narrowed dangerous. Zetsu's head popped up at the simple term. His eyes traced lazily over to Katsu with a smirk, his eyes glowing in the light as his gaze slowly slid to me. Katsu seemed clueless to what he had done. _Damn it Katsu,_ I grumbled trying to force an indifferent face. Katsu had always called me Nee-chan when he was pouting or frustrated with me, but we didn't need to let Zetsu the depth of our relationship. Sure, he knew I was close to him. I even said I would die without him. Nevertheless, he didn't know if it was a bluff or not. He didn't know for sure that I really would kill myself if Katsu wasn't around anymore. Now though, Zetsu _knows_ how dear Katsu is to me. Now he knows I'll do anything for him.

_I guess there's no point in trying to hide it now,_ I grumbled mentally.

"You go ahead. I need to check something out." I gave him an apologetic smile at the torn look on his face. He jerked his head towards Zetsu and glared at me. "Don't worry," I laughed. "I'll be right over there. Just call if you need me; it's not like I'm far away."

I pointed to the apple tree we were sitting under earlier, holding up the food in my hands to show I was only putting our things away. At least, that's what I wanted Zetsu to think. The sun had risen a little more, providing plenty of cool shade under the green fluffy leaves, along with the seclusion from prying eyes. The branches bent down at just the right angle to create a small little coven underneath it. It gave the perfect spot to call out the Hirokosai's sacred scrolls. Under there, no one would be able to see what I was doing, at least… I hoped not.

"What about you complaining about smelling me the entire time!" he shouted making me cringe. Before I knew it, I heard Katsu's feet padding against the grass as he ran up behind me.

_Oh great…_

I turned around just in time to see him smirk evilly. "Come on Amaya-chan, it's time for a swim."

He was about to tackle me, grab me by the arm, and drag me over to—from what I could guess—throw me in the water himself. I could read his moves from the slight hunch in his shoulders. There was too much tension in his legs. I didn't even have to try, skillfully side stepping him and lightly catching him before he could fall. He stumbled for a moment, thrown off balance from the lack of contact, but it didn't take long for him to recover. Before he could lunge out for me again, I grabbed him by the shoulders, keeping him at an arms distance away. Despite the little twinge in my patience, I couldn't help but smile at the sudden look of pure shock written all over his face that I could stop him. Slowly his shock melted into awe and then into frustration.

"_Nee-chan!_"

He had to pick now of all time to be a pain.

"Fine!"

"I win!" Katsu screamed making me jump. With a grin, he ran back over to the water and did a cannon ball, sending water flying up into the air. When he came back up, he turned towards me, spluttering slightly in the water. "You better be getting in or else I'm going to come and tackle you."

I shivered at the thought. "Hold on," I grumbled.

I glanced between Zetsu and Katsu to see both men had their eyes fixated on me. Suddenly I couldn't help but feel shy stripping in the middle of a small clearing having both watch me. Katsu and I had gone swimming plenty of times before. But ... Zetsu—I shivered again, shaking away my awkwardness. It wasn't as if I really had a choice.

I watched Zetsu's gaze hesitantly as I slowly slipped out of my ninja sandals, noticing how amused he suddenly looked. I kicked them aside, wanting to go hide behind a tree, but my pride balked at the idea. I wasn't some coward. I wouldn't let him see how nervous and strange I suddenly felt taking my clothes off in front of him. Awkwardly, I slipped out of my loose black ninja pants, flushing when Zetsu's gaze followed my movements unabashed, his eyes snapping up to meet my gaze as I tugged off my short sleeve shirt until I was in nothing but my underwear. As soon as I felt the cool air against my bare skin, I instinctively pulled my clothes against my bare stomach, curling in to hide myself.

I'd never been self-conscious about myself or the way I looked before. I knew I wasn't ugly or breathe taking. Sure, I was taller than most girls with more of an athletic build than feminine, but I had never really cared about it. Yet seeing both Katsu and Zetsu look at me threw me off. Especially Zetsu. I could say Katsu is a little boy all I wanted but there was one thing I would never be able to lie to myself about; that's what he was, a boy. Zetsu was a fully developed, strong _man_. The fact he was a monster didn't change it one bit. Having him look at me, I didn't know if I was supposed to say something or ignore him as I shifted from foot to foot, but Zetsu's gaze still on my skin was making my skin tingle in the weirdest ways.

Katsu was grinning, not completely oblivious to my discomfort, but obviously misplacing it thinking I didn't want to get in the water because Zetsu was there. Which was only partially right. He laughed, finally starting to swim around.

"Well are you coming or not?" Katsu giggled.

"I'm coming!" I snapped, carefully laying my clothes over a branch so I knew where they were. The last thing I would want to happen is have something happen to them and have to walk around longer than normal half way naked. Even thinking about it made my cheeks burn.

The tips of my fingers brushed over the cone-shaped pendant around my neck and for a second I stopped. Should I take it off? Humming in thought, I stroked the cool crystal. After a second, I decided against it. A little water wouldn't hurt.

I focused on Katsu's face as attempted to walk confidently towards the water. It killed me how something as pathetic as this could make throw me off this much. I'd never showed myself this much to anyone before, let alone a murderer. At least the water looked deep enough to jump in from the side so I wouldn't have to wade into the water. Right now, Katsu's large grin was exactly what I needed to distract myself. I almost didn't feel Zetsu's cruel eyes following me all the way to the water.

This was going to be one of the fastest bathes of my life.

Closing my eyes, I took two running steps before diving down straight to the bottom of the clear pool. Goosebumps rose on my arms feeling the instant cold, refreshing water swallow me whole. From the bottom, I looked up, holding my breath to see Katsu swimming over in my direction with the dull roar of the waterfall off to the side echoing in my ears. Katsu's form was dark against the sun beating down around him. I sat there a second, hoping I could lie at the bottom forever.

Eventually my lungs started to burn. I gave one hard push from the uneven rocks at the bottom, launching myself back up to the surface and sucked in a quick breath. The second my head breached the surface I noticed birds had started to sing off in the forests. Their songs bounced off the mountains surrounding the small basin, twisting and mixing their individual calls into one beautiful harmony. I smiled for a second, only listening.

There was a soft whistle as something flew through the air drawing my attention. Panicking I swirled around in the water, reaching down for a shuriken at my leg, hissing remembering I had taken them off. I barely had time to launch my hand back up, just in time to catch the bar of soap aimed directly for my head. In my death grip, it squished, flying from my hands. I let out a squeak, stretching out to catch it again before it was last to the bottom.

Soap? Where in the world did this come from? It definitely wasn't mine.

Curiously, I looked over to see Zetsu glance at me, his eyes emotionlessly boring into my soul before turning back around to rub something into his arms and chest. He threw this at me? Cautiously I sniffed it, only half-way interested if it smelt decent enough. Even if it didn't, there was no other choice. I was just happy he was nice enough to bother to let me use it. When I packed my pack, I hadn't been considering being captured by a serial killer and needing soap as an option. I was pleased to find it only had a slight scent, a mixture between daffodils and a natural musk. It could be worse.

"What's that Amaya-chan?" Katsu asked curiously. He paddled over awkwardly, determined to keep an eye on Zetsu at all times. I watched him struggle to face both of us at once for a moment, biting back a grin.

"Soap."

I didn't bother to explain more as I knew he wanted me to, but instead swam over to the center rock so I could lather my skin without having to try to stay afloat at the same time. I would have to tolerate being this close to Zetsu for now.

At the sound of me swimming closer, I could practically see Zetsu's ear twitch back as though he wanted to look at me. His muscles froze, locking up. I stopped simultaneously, waiting for a moment to see if he would spin and attack. Yet he just sat there. Anticipating. Biting my lip I finally grabbed onto the rock, hauling myself easily from the water. I made sure to sit close to the edge to make sure I wouldn't have to be closer to him than necessary but it didn't seem to matter. The second I was situated Zetsu resumed rubbing in the soap.

I hurried through my bath faster than I probably needed to. Katsu was swimming around, playfully splashing water towards me until he ended up splashing Zetsu in the process. The glare he received was more than enough to keep him away. I could nearly feel the hatred radiating off both of them. Zetsu thought Katsu is only an idiotic dead weight slowing him down pointlessly and Katsu hated Zetsu's guts for hurting me. Swallowing tersely, I simply rushed the rest of my bath, desperate to get away from the thick air.

Thankfully, Zetsu finally jumped back in to rinse himself off, leaving me all alone for a couple of moments. Katsu instantly darted to the other side of the basin, swimming precariously close to the waterfall, but now I simply trusted him not to drown himself. My eyes locked on Zetsu's form gliding around in the water as though he was swimming through air.

When I was done, I didn't dare toss the soap back at Zetsu no matter how much I wanted to see if I could hit him right in the face. I was pushing my luck enough as it was. Instead, I set it down carefully on the rock, shuddering as we locked eyes for that second and quickly snapping back upright. His eyes left me feeling exposed in front of him. I shivered, wrapping my arms protectively around myself and trying desperately to ignore his hollow gaze. He paused, his eyes glancing down at the soap again before he started swimming towards the rock. I tensed, instantly diving off to the side to wash off. It only took a couple of moments and I was out of the water. Katsu was about to complain about me leaving him, but I was already gone, sneaking off to a secluded area I could watch them both and dry off.

Zetsu once again perched on top of the rock-like thrown, most likely drying off. I watched him carefully as I pretended to dig through my bag. Even if all else failed, Zetsu could never be allowed to know the real location of my clan's biggest secret. The Shuumi scrolls: three separate scrolls said to have all of the power, knowledge, and gifts of the Hirokosai Clan locked away inside. I would give my life before he could find out.

As innocently as possible I looked around, waiting until I was one hundred percent sure Zetsu wasn't watching. Thankfully, he was facing the other way. He was too busy watching Katsu flounder around in the water to pay any attention. Good. I took a deep breath steadying myself. Then with one more quick peek to make sure Zetsu's back was still turned I reached up, clasping my necklace in both hands.

A pulsating throb of energy pounded in my hands all the way up to my heart, filling me to the brim with pure endless energy. My eyes shot open as I sucked in a shaky breath. _Steady,_ I reminded myself. _Remember the enchantments and focus._

"_Eih mitsu-torae._"

With a flash of glowing green light, there was a silent hiss of energy sucking forwards towards the top of the pendant. Quickly reach up I placed my palm over the opening, closing my eyes and picturing what I needed. In the blink of an eye, the pendant had closed again. A large thick scroll sat in the palm of my hand.

Jerking back around I looked to see Zetsu calmly poised in the same exact spot as before. I let out a deep breath I didn't realize I was holding. _That could have been bad._

Just as I shifted, placing the scroll gingerly at my feet, I suddenly felt Zetsu's gaze shift over to me. Instantly I looked up meeting his gaze. Neither of us moved. Inside my chest, I could feel my gut clench, my palm already starting to sweat. We stared at each other for some time before I couldn't take it anymore, finally looking away.

A couple seconds later, I peeked back through my hair to find he had turned back to whatever he had been doing before.

_Now then…_ I thought, turning back around and silently unraveling the scroll to reveal blank paper. I closed my eyes for a second focusing solely on what I wanted. Pictures of the path we took getting here formed in my mind, gently growing clearer and clearer until they merged into a perfect photograph in my head. Holding on to the image, I called on my chakra. The sudden energy inside me swelled up inside my chest. _A little longer…_

Opening my eyes, I placed my hand over the blank scroll, at the same time releasing my chakra. For a second nothing happened. Then, as if by magic, ink stared to bleed out of the paper, flowing and forming words and pictures. After a second, I looked down to see a map with the exact trail we had taken up the mountains all the way down to the waterfall highlighted. Around the entire area was about two hundred kilometers of woods and mountains. Only three paths diverged from the area.

A small smile stole its way onto my face despite my efforts to hold it back. I had traveled this way before, a long time ago with my father when he had showed me one of his secret hiding places in between the two larger Sayon Mountains. He used to show me all of the secret trails around here. It was, as he said, to give me a final edge if anything would ever happen. By the looks of it, things hadn't changed much over all this time. Small little paragraphs appeared over each path telling about the conditions and use within the last fifteen years. Only one had really been grown over.

Zetsu had taken us down the longest trail I noted, the less travelled of the three. It led straight out of the mountains out into the open forest. The shortest trail curved around to the Takeshimiko Clan, the next small village over from Chisenochi from the opposite direction of my house. There wasn't too strong of a chance that we would be heading that way, not unless Zetsu worked for a minor businessman that just happened to know about me. Then again, I doubted anyone around here could afford to pay Zetsu, someone who obviously knew what he was doing. If that was the case though he would have simply led us back down the way I had climbed up and directly into town instead of taking a couple hundred kilometers detour. The other trail seemed just as unlikely. It ran back up the highest of the three Sayon Mountains then off the map in the direction of the Fire Nation. That was good. Now I would have an edge. If only I knew where we were going, then I could form a plan to get away….

I jumped at the sounds of footsteps crunching against the grass. When I looked up, I noticed Zetsu was gone from his perch. _Shit! _I cursed. How long had he been gone? Panicking, I released my chakra from the scroll, snapping one end down on the ground for it to roll itself up and stow it away in my bag. I cringed when a black hand stopped me.

"_**Give it to me**_," his rough voice demanded.

Without waiting for me to comply, he tore the scroll from my hands and hastily reopened it, scanned it over with his penetrating eyes. I stared hard at the ground as he quickly looked it over, too scared to look up. My heart was pounding. My blood racing. Would this be it? Would he kill me now?

Would he hurt Katsu?

I cringed, digging my fingers into the dirt. I could feel his gaze. Tearing through me. Thinking over all the way to make me beg for death. Some idiotic part of me caused me to glance up, meet his fiery gaze. It made me flinch when instead of anger or death in his eyes, there was an empty hole, the kind of gaze that sent my stomach to my throat, drying my tongue like sandpaper in my mouth. I couldn't swallow. Couldn't even breathe. In his eyes, I couldn't _see_ anything. It was so much worse. Cringing back, I flinched when his hand snapped down to show me the blank scroll.

"_**What is this**__?_" he hissed.

I bit back my sigh of relief that I'd cancelled the jutsu fast enough. It was a good thing I hadn't tried to put it back inside my pendant or else he would have discovered the others as well. Zetsu hadn't even gotten dressed yet and I was still able to hide my secret in time. Relieved I smirked softly, opening my mouth to jeer at him, but before I could make a sound is hand slammed around my throat, crushing me against the unforgiving bark. He slowly pulled me up to his eye level, scrapping my back raw and crushing the life from me. My hands clawed helplessly at his grip. It was like iron. There wasn't a chance to make a sound. He was crushing my windpipe.

Panicking, I lashed out with my chakra, blasting into his body with a steady stream of my own energy, severing and slicing everything I could find. Zetsu's eyes flashed, a snarl tearing from his throat. It was the only warning I had before his knee connected with my gut, his free hand landing a solid punch across my face, shattering my focus. Instantly my chakra faltered and he took the chance to switch hands, his one arm falling limply to his side while the other once again snapped around my neck.

Still I smirked, cringing as his grip tightened, knowing I had hurt him indefinitely worse. "N-Not so … funny now, i-is it?" I sneered.

His eyes narrowed. I could feel him ripping through my skin with his nails, as he shoved against me. Every inch of his body pressed into mine forcing what little air I had left out and crunching me further back into the tree, his sun-warmed skin pressing into my own. Eyes widening, heart racing, I gasped as something snapped inside my throat. I could taste the blood. Another crack echoed from my chest. Even with his iron grip crushing my throat I let out a scream. It came out as nothing more than a whimper.

He growled venomously, his lips pulling back over his long white teeth in a snarl. "_Don't for once think that your life means anything to me. My orders were to bring you back to base. __**How I bring you back…**_" He let his voice trail off as he switched smoothly between the two voices. I recoiled, barely hiding my fear. "_**I couldn't care less**_."

I tried hard to draw in a breath, but it was getting harder and harder to breath. My eyes were starting to get heavy. Oh so heavy. Ever so slowly, I dipped into my chakra, reaching in to try to heal myself, heal something to keep me from drowning in blood.

"_**Now**_," he hissed. "_What was on the scroll_?"

Katsu burst from the trees at the noise his eyes wide. My eyes flickered to him for a second. One brief second. More pressure adding onto my already broken throat sent my eyes rolling to the back of my head, black dots starting to cover everything in sight. "H-Hey!" he shouted, barely able to realize what was happening.

Chaos broke out in the next moments.

"What the hell are you doing?" he screeched. Anxiously I tried arching my body from the tree, shoving and pushing desperately to break away from the monster in front of me, but it was no use. My body was no match for his, pushing and forming uselessly around his toned muscles, pushing against what felt like a wall. My limbs filled with led, my reactions sluggish and weak. From what seemed like far away I could hear Katsu. Running. Screaming. "_Let her go!"_

There was a mangled scream as Zetsu shifted to look over his shoulder. I could still feel half of his chest peel off mine, letting my lung expand while his hips dug into my own to keep me pinned. Instantly Katsu's footsteps stopped. Painstakingly, I forced my eyes open, willing myself to look over to see him, to see my everything, praying he was okay. Not even six feet away he hung, thick wild green vines and limbs wrapping and coiling around him. Choking him. Engulfing him.

Zetsu's eyes had only flashed over towards Katsu for a moment, his gaze never wavering. In that moment, I knew we were in something way over either of our heads. There wasn't a way to stop this—this _freak_. For a second I could see it, I could see him killing me now. Then I watched horrified, as a crazed looked flashed across his eyes with an evil smirk. He leaned in closer, his breath tickling my ear. I tried hard to tear away his fingers, to run, to breathe.

I couldn't move at what he said next.

He smiled sickly, purring into my ear, _"__**Next time, **_**he**_** will pay**_."

With that, he squeezed tighter, making blood shoot up into my mouth. Desperately I pushed chakra into his palm, breaking down his chakra receptor in an attempt to drain him of everything he had. Instantly, dark controlling chakra flooded into me, coating and layering every inch of me in something cold. His energy surged through my network, replenishing and rebuilding in the worst ways. For a second his eyes widened, shock hitting him. In the next second, I found myself flying into the nearest tree. I let out a choked sound as my back crushed into the bark, denting it under the force. Blood dribbled down my throat. I could feel myself breathing it in. Zetsu's lip curled back in disgust.

"_**Hurry up and heal yourself wrench**__. We're leaving_."

He walked away without another word, pausing once by Katsu with a look of contempt. Katsu's eyes were burning in so much hatred. It was as if he didn't even know what to do. Zetsu took one glance at him, raised his good hand, and then as if on another thought decided it wasn't even worth the effort. He disappeared before Katsu could even react, all of the vines slipping back into the ground as he went.

I gasped as a searing pain shot up my chest. Quickly I placed my hand over my throat, focusing all of my chakra on that one point. Already I could feel my blood starting to fill one of my lungs. My windpipe was crushed along with one of my jugulars. A nasty bruise was forming along my cheekbone, blood pouring into my lung from a punctured rib. Everything was starting to go double when Katsu appeared in my view. I choked again on blood as I felt myself sticking together piece by piece.

"I'm going to fucking kill that bastard," Katsu growled, clenching his fists.

He never moved as I sat there coughing up blood. Never twitched as I desperately tried healing myself. I couldn't register the look on his face or the icy sharp green color of his eyes. I couldn't even think about the new glint in his eyes or the burning desire on his face.

The burning desire for blood.


	7. Clueless As Ever

**AN:** What is this? Is this a new chapter? Gasp!

Sorry about the extrememly long and painful delay before I got this chapter up. No excuses. Just failure. Anyway, I already have the next five chapters typed up so don't let me be a bum and not update. It's about time Zestu got some more action!

Speaking of which, you guys ahve no idea how happy you made me when i saw how many more peole are following my story. It kind of made my day :) Anywho! R&R please!

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><p><strong>Chapter 7<strong>

**Clueless As Ever**

There was no stopping this time. No mercy. No breaks. Again, I could feel every step, every jolt of pain as I tried to breathe in. It only made it worse as we walked; it was harder and harder to breathe. The only chakra I had left was dark and cold, slithering around inside of me like a serpent ready to strike. It was all I had left. Part of me was sorely tempted to reach back to my pendant, to feel that pure crisp _clean_ energy fill me. Yet, I knew I couldn't. He would notice.

Zetsu held to a faster pace than last time, obviously to make up for the lost time at the basin. He didn't bother to glance back whenever Katsu or I made a sound or stumbled over rocks. I kept my silent glee to myself, noting every time he would twitch slightly in an attempt to use his shredded arm on to find it unresponsive. I must have shredded some of his muscles and tendons. A fact I was most likely going to pay for later.

I smiled satisfied we had gone the way I thought we would even if it was only a brief painful grimace. The elation didn't last long though, not with the pain. Even after healing myself, I could still feel Zetsu's hand crushing my throat. I could feel his nails digging into the side of my neck, his chakra leaking through me like a disease, like a drug. I could feel everything.

Katsu kept stealing glances of me, worried. I couldn't bear to look at him. His face was in so much pain and anger. Every time I found myself looking at him I could feel tiny parts of the Katsu I love disappearing. It broke my heart.

Would it have been better if I had risked the chances of Zetsu coming back to kill Zetsu by leaving Katsu in the village? Was I making it worse? Making him suffer? I didn't dare answer, too afraid of facing the breaking truth. I couldn't take it. Not now.

Every time Katsu and I finally seemed to match Zetsu's slave driving pace it seemed like he would only speed up more, nearly to the point I was have to jog to keep up. Eventually, after the fifth try I gave up, sinking into a slightly slower pace. Katsu let out a grunt in relief, easily sliding back with me, thankful for the easier speed. Yet the second Zetsu noticed we were drifting too far back he'd snap his head around, sending me a pointed look to move it _or else. _I wanted so bad to rip him a piece of my mind. Oh, it was so tempting. To make a point Zetsu's gaze shifted over to Katsu, his eyes flickering back to mine for a split second before he turned around. Biting my lip, I sped back up. It seemed like we were going to walk all night at the pace we were going.

I took out the leftovers from lunch for Katsu and I when the sun started to sink behind the mountains. Katsu didn't say a word as he took the rest of his bread loaf. He barely gave a nod in appreciation, unable to look at me for more than a spare second. I was too tired to worry. I was too tired to do anything.

I lost track of time, only looking out for the large Venus flytrap leading us—mostly likely blindly—through the green pine trees. If only I could somehow make him feel the pain, feel my resentment and disgust maybe that would make everything go away. One thing I knew was if anyone could ever know how much I detested that _thing_, that kidnapper, they wouldn't even be able to move under the weight of my burning hate.

My chakra was slowly starting to replenish itself. There wasn't enough yet, but I could still use some to get rid of a little of the scorching pain in my throat. As I carefully dipped into _my_ energy reserves, I could feel the cool, soothing sensations more refreshing than a cup of ice-cold water on a hot day wash down my throat. It wasn't much, but it would help me breathe. Zetsu's chakra—that I kept locked away, tightly sealed in the far corners of my mind where I couldn't feel the evil intent. It was better that way.

I stole a glance at Katsu, blocking out the strange feeling his hard gaze sent through me. He turned to me as soon as he noticed I was looking at him. Something spider-webbed in my chest seeing his broken smile, the cruel twisted glint in his eyes. The glint that screamed for blood.

I quickly made a calculation in my head. Anything to get his mind right again. Anything to prepare him in case there were more dangerous men we were going to meet.

"H-Hey Katsu," I croaked, my voice beyond scratchy.

He cringed but didn't comment. "Yeah?"

I carefully directed more chakra to my throat, tenderly washing away the sand that seemed to have crusted there. The drop in energy sent my eyes dropping, but it was worth it. Anything to keep him from cringing.

"Do you want me… to teach you something?"

He gave me a sideways look. Very slowly, his eyes began fading from the angry icy green into a deeper green, something less intense. I spared a smile before stumbling clumsily over a rock. Katsu was quick to catch my arm, his brows furrowing together. "Sure you don't want to focus on walking Nee-chan? No offense, but you're not looking too hot."

"Do you want to learn or not?" I snapped defensively.

"Ok, ok!" he amended, his hands snapping up in surrender, but he couldn't hide the curiosity in his eyes. "Depends on what you want to teach me."

I took a couple deep breaths to sooth my throat. By the looks of it, Zetsu was still pointedly ignoring us, his head firmly forward. Good.

"Do you know about chakra control?" I whispered, nodding towards Zetsu to tell him to keep his voice down.

For a second we shared a metal connection as he looked around, and then carefully started walking closer. It was barely noticeable. Even if Zetsu turned around and look at us for once, it wouldn't do any good. We glanced at each other again before he answered. I smiled a bit to myself, feeling his mood lighten a bit.

"Not a clue."

"Tell me what chakra is then," I asked instead.

His face twisted into concentration for a second. "Chakra's the energy source of all ninja's. It's where they get their ability to use all of their jutsu, right?"

"Err yeah, sort of. Chakra's practically energy. There are two things you need to be able to control your chakra: the spiritual energy that comes from training, and the regular energy that is always in the body. Make sense?"

He groaned, before cringing and stealing a peek to see if Zetsu noticed. "Yeah, whatever. They ranted on about this in the academy. That stuff was so boring. What does this have to do with chakra control anyway?"

_Baka_, I thought, sighing. _You have to learn the boring part first and _then _the practical part._ I took a moment to collect my own thoughts and relax so I didn't come off the wrong way. We walked quietly for a moment along with impossibly green path. "It's when a shinobi can direct the flow of chakra inside their body and, for example, can collect chakra in their hands to strengthen a hit or anything in that nature. When a shinobi has mastered chakra control, it becomes instantaneous to perform jutsu or other tasks. Okay?"

"Okay."

"Good."

"But how do you do it?"

I thought for a moment. I'd been directing my chakra flow for so long it had become second nature. Explaining it was going to be hard. "Try and focus on the energy flow in your body first, and when you can feel it you just try to direct it to where you want it to go. There's really no way to explain it. You just sort of do it."

All I got back was a blank look.

"So you know where your chakra forms, right?"

"Yeah in the stomach."

I grinned, peeking up at Zetsu for a split second. "And you know the two types of chakra."

He snorted, kicking a pebble with the scuff of his sandal. Zetsu's head whirled around, glaring at the boy, feeling the rock barely miss its target. Katsu blanched, shoving his hands in his pocket and forcing the most intimidating glare he could. He opened his mouth to shout something at him but I smacked him in the back of the head, hiding the discomfort of the moment.

Spinning around on me he snarled, "What are you doing?"

I glared vehemently, lowering my voice just as much. To where it was lethal. "I should ask you the same question! Do you have a death wish?"

"No! And even if I did, _so what_ if I do? That _thing's_ a freak Amaya-chan. He's a monster. I'm not going to just sit here and watch him hurt you over, and over again. I can't do it! Someone has the teach it a lesson and—"

"And what?" I snapped. By now we had stopped walking, our voices dangerously low but barely enough for Zetsu not to hear. "_You're_ going to be the one to 'teach it a lesson'? Katsu sorry to break it to you but that _thing_, as you so call it, is a whole lot stronger than you think he is."

"I don't care! I'll find a way!"

"Katsu." I paused, sucking in a deep breath. He glared down at the ground, his eyes a steely icy green that showed the depth of his rage. Gently I put a hand on his shoulder, but he still wouldn't meet my gaze. "Katsu, come on. Look at me." His gaze finally shifted. "I know that you're mad. I understand. Do you think that I'm not?"

Stepping up to me, he grabbed my shoulders, his eyes bleeding and voice cracked. "Then why don't you do something? Why don't you stop him!"

"…I can't. Not yet."

I couldn't bring myself to look down into his eyes now. Instead, I turned away; staring up at the point Zetsu had stopped way up ahead. From here, I could only see his figure and his shadow reaching back to us like poison. Even from here, I couldn't escape the slice of his gaze or the crushing weight of his chakra. It filled me like mud.

Slowly I turned back to Katsu, frowning when I saw him staring angrily at his feet, hands clenched so tight at his sides his knuckles were white. Gently I placed my fingers under his chin, sadly bringing his gaze back up to me. What I saw nearly shattered my heart. "I just … I can't stand it Nee-chan," he pleaded. When his gaze flickered up to Zetsu, I saw the pain, hurt, and anger burning deep down in his soul. "I hate it. I hate was he does to you, but I can't do anything about it. I _hate_ him."

Pulling him into my chest, I closed my eyes, breathing him in. When I finally spoke my voice was little more than a whisper. "I'll find a way to get you out of here Katsu. I promise."

We stood like that for a while, up until I felt Zetsu's chakra begin to stir impatiently. I gave Katsu I quick smile, ruffling his hair. "Come on," I murmured. "Let's get going before he decides to yell at us."

Katsu grumbled something under his breath I couldn't quite make out, but I ignored it in favor for sucking up what was left of my pride and pushing myself back up to the grueling pace. Just as I hoped, Katsu followed my lead, this time never straying far from my side. Zetsu shot us both a meaningful look, but said nothing as he once started walking. I smiled at the fact we had probably slowed him down even more than he wanted.

Eventually though my patience drifted back to earlier. Nudging Katsu's shoulder I stole a peek down at him. "Still want to learn about chakra control?"

He peeked over at me, whipping his large dark hair from his eyes. Scooting closer, he nodded.

Thinking back over it, I tried remembering where we left off. "Oh yeah! Right. You know where chakra's from already so do you know the two different types of chakra?"

"Yeah, spiritual and physical," he snorted. "You said it yourself earlier."

"Right… well, do you know how to combine them?"

He paused, clearing drawing back on all of the 'boring' lectures he probably slept through in the academy. "Uh, not really. They just said to combine them."

I nodded. "To combine them you have to draw the right amount of each to one place of your body. If you want to perform a jutsu, you draw the chakra to your hands and chest. To strengthen your hits you draw it to your arm and hands just like you draw it to your feet to walk on water and up walls. Make sense?"

"Whoa! You can walk on water with chakra?" he shouted, making Zetsu's ear twitch. "That's so cool!"

"Yep," I laughed, grinning down at him.

A puzzled look crossed his face. "Wait," he paused. I tried hard to keep up a smile, hiding my groan. This stuff was so easy it was frustrating. "So how do you focus it somewhere?"

"Here, look at the rock." I gestured off to one side were the Sayon Mountain jutted up from the earth next to us. "See how it's almost straight up? Now, to focus my chakra to let me walk up I'd have to channel it to my feet. The chakra would let me stick to the rock without worrying about falling. There are all types of different ways to do it, but probably the easiest way is to physically picture your chakra moving to wherever you want it to go."

"That's amazing!" Katsu gasped.

I cringed slightly, glancing up at Zetsu. His head turned slightly, but seemed to care less about what was going on behind him. I knew now that all he cared about was getting me to where he was ordered to take me as fast as possible. "_**Keep up**_**,**" he growled, turning back forward.

I watched in kind of wonder as the Venus flytrap on his shoulders shifted slightly. It drove me crazy how I could be intrigued by a monster like him.

Turning back to Katsu, I decided it would be too much information for him now thought to tell him how the chakra wore down the body. If he wanted to know that badly then he would find out soon enough. Knowing him, he'd probably try to find a way to learn while we were walking, not that I would let him. Zetsu couldn't—_wouldn't_—know about this. Any hint that he was even coming close to finding out Katsu couldn't even remotely control his chakra—if he hadn't already figured it out by now—and we could lose a potential advantage if things came down to a fight.

I was just happy I had managed to distract Katsu from his anger even for the moment. I couldn't stand fighting with him.

Katsu grinned. I recognized that look on his face. "Hell yeah! Now that's what I'm talking about. Teach me! Please? Please, oh please teach me—"

This time Zetsu did look back at us as Katsu continued to rant on about me teaching him. Our eyes met for a moment. For a second I could have sworn I saw his eyes flicker down to the pendant at my neck, but before I could be sure he was facing forward again, continuing his grueling pace. Self-consciously I reached up, stroking the cool crystal. I could feel the scrolls whirl around inside. Safe. Undetected. When Zetsu had left us I had quickly replacing the scroll I drew out back inside. Taking in a deep breath, I forced myself to relax. There was no way Zetsu could know about the scrolls secret hiding place.

Sighing, I closed my eyes for a moment, vaguely aware of Katsu consistent pleading in the back of my mind. I should have known better than to tell Katsu about any technique. The next thing I knew he would be calling me "Sensei" or something. Grudgingly I opened my eyes to see he was still blabbering on about me training him. The clouds had never looked so interesting before. Gradually I let my eyes wonder.

Wait. My eyes snapped towards the sharp turn in the mountain up ahead. That wasn't on the map before. At least, I didn't think it was on the map. This trail should go up at least another ten to fifteen miles before dumping out into the open forest. Even the slightly down curvature of the path could tell someone that.

"—promise I'll listen and learn quickly! Please?"

"No. Not while we're traveling," I said using a bit more of my chakra to heal the rasp in my voice. Our whispered yelling match did nothing good for my throat, making it even raspier and sorer than before. Katsu sputtered for a response but I didn't have time for his badgering. I quickly pulled my pack higher on my shoulders and quickened my pace, despite the natural burning in my chest. "No arguing."

"But _why_ Nee-chan?"

"Just believe me, okay?" I glanced over at him trying to stress the importance of this without spelling it out. I had multiple reasons right now, and none of them seemed like a good thing for Zetsu to overhear since I knew he was eavesdropping on our conversation anyway.

He pouted, throwing out his bottom lip to make me feel guilty. He knew I couldn't take it when it did that. I looked away to ignore the twisting feeling in my stomach. "Fine," he grumbled.

We shouldn't be heading this way, I realized panicking. I'd already thought up a way to get away if we had followed to path the other way and gone down into the woods. This trail was completely different. Everything was ruined. I forced myself to calm down. Controlling my reactions, I secretly gauged our surroundings. The trail had suddenly turned up, not by much, but enough to cause us to rise gradually back up the side of the mountain. Here the large pine trees were starting to thin out. It didn't even look like we were on the same trail anymore.

I bit back a groan as I realized we had made a turn somewhere without me even noticing. We were taking the long path towards the Fire Nation. _Damn my stupid exhaustion!_ No wonder Zetsu didn't seem to care what we were doing. We were heading back up the mountain again.

The sky had gotten darker slightly. Darker than it should be for this time of day. That was strange. I looked up and studied the bright blue sky stretching further than I could see. It was going to storm again tonight. Cautiously I glanced over at Katsu. We would have to stop.

Storms were very common around Chisenochi. Since it was located in the middle of mountains there was always lightning or rain crashing down from the sky. Up in the mountains it was worse. Here lightning didn't just flash. Thunder did more than simply boom. Up here, we were close enough to the heavens that it wasn't uncommon for lightning to strike, fires to roar into the night, and rock slides to start from thunder echoing off the loose rocks. It was deadly.

Despite being on a different trial, I could still recognize some of the things around us. Even though Father and I didn't come this way often, it was still enough to remember important details. If my memory served me right, there should be a small cave coming up over the next turn or two. It wouldn't be much, but it would be much better than nothing. At least it would keep Katsu away from the storm. He didn't need to be reminded of his past at a time like this.

We kept walking quietly while I tried to figure out exactly how much longer we had. With the way the wind had picked up it didn't seem like too long, but I could always be wrong.

My mind was made up for me though when we came around the next bend in the path to see the cave right off to the side. _At least some things are looking good for us,_ I breathed in relief. I frowned when Zetsu walked right past it without so much as a second glance. Quickly I weighted my options in my head. Katsu was definitely more important.

"Zetsu it's going to storm. We should take shelter," I announced, feeling rather stupid talking to his back.

He didn't answer.

Clearing my throat, I raised my voice a bit. "We should stop. There's going to be a bad storm in a couple of hours."

"_We've wasted enough time_," he said.

I frowned, stopping next to the cave. Katsu paused next to me, stealing a quick glance up at Zetsu. "Amaya-chan," he whispered, tugging on the collar of his white shirt. His eyes were wide as he glanced between the two of us. "Shouldn't we be moving? I thought you didn't want to start a fight with it."

"No," I murmured. "We're going to stay here tonight."

Zetsu froze.

"If we keep going we'll be caught in the storm and get sick, if not struck by lightning. I'm staying here."

"Hell yes!" Katsu cheered, pumping his fist in the air. He glared back at Zetsu, who had finally turned to stare at me with his eerie golden eyes. I met them, not caring about the chills they sent racing up my spine or the sick twisting feeling in my stomach. "Finally! A break!"

I smiled at Katsu, ruffling his hair before walking into the cave. He whined, shouting something at me I didn't care to listen to, and then glumly made his way back into the cave, muttering things about me. I couldn't help but laugh softly to myself, watching him.

The cave was just as I remember, if not a little smaller. I shrugged that off to the fact I had grown up a lot since being here. There wasn't anything fancy about it. It was just a rather deep, narrow hole in the rock, probably stretching back fifteen feet or so. By the looks of it, it'd be perfect for the three of us. Zetsu would have his space guarding the mouth of the cave and there would be plenty of room between us while Katsu and I took the back of the cave. Not much too it, but it'd do.

The air behind me stirred, making my throat itch. I took an inaudible sharp breath as I felt a kunai press against my throat. "_If you ever do that again_," Zetsu hissed, tightening his grip on the kunai. I could feel it dig into my skin. "_I'll kill him_."

Out of reflex, I gulped, trying to wet my dry throat. I could feel his hot breath trailing over my neck. And I could feel my heart racing too fast in my chest. Beating too hard. My palms started to sweat, feeling the edge of the blade against my throat. He was close enough for the muscles of his chest to leave a ghost of pressure against my back with each breath. Swallowing again, I forced my breathing even.

In the next second, the kunai against my neck was gone. On reflex, I reached up to feel my throat, happy when for once I didn't feel blood dribbling down my skin. I let out a soft sigh, thanking my lucky stars. When I turned back to see him, Zetsu was standing perfectly still not even five feet away, watching me. I shivered, gripping my arm. The way he stood there was unnerving. The taunt broad stance of his lean tall form, his jaw slightly tense, Venus flytrap open wide enough to show a strong snippet of his bare shoulders, it sent my heart pounding.

Breaking my stare, I spun quickly, making my way as calmly and confidently to into the deepest, darkest part of the cave. Feeling those two hard, emotionless golden eyes never leaving my back was enough to give me goosebumps. I stared back, trying to hold back the panic and fear running through my body. Even if Katsu looked at my face, he would never know.

Katsu scrambled up to me the second Zetsu's gaze drifted over to him. With a funny look, he cross his arms and plopped down against the cave wall. "I can't stand him," he mumbled to himself.

I sat down heavily against the rock next to Katsu, staring up towards the front of the cave. Zetsu's silhouette turned towards the outside world. Seconds later he sat, back stiff and arms resting on his knees as though he was meditating, still fully aware of his surroundings. There went any idea I had of slipping by him when he was asleep. Any chance of escaping was crushed.

A clap of thunder shook the cave. Katsu buried his face deep into my side, shuttering and cringing as the rocks groaned. More flashes and streams of lighting and rain started pouring from the mouth of the cave. Lovingly I started stroking Katsu's hair, humming and shushing him as soothingly as I could. It was a vain attempt. Nothing could stop Katsu from remembering the atrocities that came with storms.

"Nee-chan," Katsu murmured his voice weak and already starting to drift to the far reaches of sleep. I hummed, letting him know he had my attention. "Can you tell me the story of the mouse and the two rats?"

I glanced warily at Zetsu. "I don't know…"

"Please?"

"Ok. Come here," I sighed. Katsu grinned, sliding closer to me. I laughed softly, pulling his head down into my lap, gently stroking his hair. "Now, let me see here…"

"_Once upon a time there was a tiny brown mouse living in his tiny brown house in the woods outside of his town. His name was Notoma._

"_Every morning Notoma would go out right at dawn, travelling through the woods to go into his tiny little town to work at his job in the bakery, making sweet treats for the boys and girls. Everyone loved his shop. He made the best caramel candies and gumdrops and sugary dumpling in town. People would come from all around for his baking, some even as far as across the sea._

"_Then every night Notoma would travel all the way back to his little brown house where he would sit in front of a warm bright fire and read a book before bed. Life was peaceful for Notoma."_

Katsu stirred in my side, pouting up at me with wide deep blue eyes. "_Nee-_chan, get to the story already! When do Remus and Tataku come in?"

I poked him obnoxiously on the forehead. He pouted swatting away my hand. "Hey," I teased, sticking out my tongue. "Who's telling this story?"

Grumbling something under his breath, he turned his head away.

"What was that? I can't hear you."

"You," he mumbled.

"That's right," I grinned. With a laugh, I ran my hands through his hair. "Now hush. I'm getting there."

"_One night when Notoma was sitting in his big red reading chair he heard a strange noise outside. Thump tha-da-dump. _**How strange**,_ he said, looking up. Carefully he looked around the room for whatever caused the noise. The room was quiet however, the only noise coming from the crackle of the fire. _**I thought I heard something.**

"_There came the noise again faster this time. Louder. Thump tha-da-dump. Thump tha-da-dump. Someone was knocking at his door. _**Strange,**_ Notoma said, looking over at the clock. _**Who could be knocking at this hour?**

"_Indeed it was late. Far too late for any townspeople to come knocking for a quick cup of tea and sweets. Notoma quickly put down his book, carefully setting it off to the side before hurrying over to the door. Just as the knocking came again—thump tha-da-dump—and pulled open the door._

"**Rats!**_ he squeaked._

"_Right in front of Notoma stood two tall, giant rats with similar ugly grins on their gnarled faces. The pair shared a meaningful look—a cruel look—their grins showing off their large razor sharp teeth. _**Look what we found Remus,**_ hissed the first rat. He stepped towards Notoma, running a sharpened claw along his face. The second brother chuckled. _**A mouse!**

"_In a whirl the rats shoved into the house, pouncing on Notoma and quickly smothering his cries. _**It doesn't matter how much you scream little mouse,** _Remus sneered. _**No one will hear you out here.**

_It was true. No matter how hard Notoma fought or how loud he screamed, he knew no one would come and find him out in his tiny brown house in the woods. The rats smiled as they tied poor Notoma down in his favorite red chair. The first brother laughed, looking around the house. _**Come Remus. Let's see what this mouse has in the kitchen.**

"**Coming Tataku.**

"_The two brothers fled from the room leaving Notoma. He tried feebly to break the ropes, but they didn't even budge. A crash from the kitchen made him jump. Echoing laughter filled the room. They were ransacking his kitchen. _**Oh, what am I going to do?**_ Notoma cried. _**How can I get out of this?**

"_Tataku came back out with a smile. He scurried to Notoma, forcing the mouse to look up at his towering frame and grizzly grin. _**In order to celebrate this momentous occasion my brother is throwing us a feast. We would just love to have you join us.**

"**M-Me?**_ Notoma squeaked. _**But w-why?**

"**Good! Then it's settled**._ Tataku gave another evil grin. In one quick motion, he had cut through the ropes binding Notoma and yanked him from his favorite chair. _**You'll be our guest of honor!**

"_Just then, as Notoma heard a pan clatter to the floor he got an idea. _**I-I don't know if I want to eat food that could be **_**poisoned**_**…**

"**What?** _Tataku turned. He stared at Notoma, almost as if he was really thinking about it for a long time before finally barking out in laughter. _**My brother, Remus, poison me? It'll take more than that to fool me mouse**.

"**Well if **_**I**_** were to raid a house, **_**I**_** wouldn't want to share anything with **_**my**_** brother. He's probably going to try and get rid of you before you even start eating**_**,**__ Notoma said quietly._

"_Tataku snarled, giving Notoma a hard shove in the direction of his dining room. Notoma cringed, expecting the worse to come. Yet the first brother never made a move to attack him, only shoving him down in one of the four chairs around his small table and retying the ropes around him. _**What do you know**_** mouse?**_ _he muttered._

"_At that moment, Remus came out of the kitchen with two glasses. _**For you Tataku. Drink up while I bring in the food.**

"**No! **_Tataku cried suddenly. The rat paused, showing off his razor sharp teeth. _**Here let me Remus. You wait here with the mouse.**

"_The other nodded, not quite sure what had gotten into his brother. Still though, Notoma could see he was grateful he didn't have to carry in all of the food. Notoma waited until Tataku had disappeared into the kitchen and the other sat down to his right before he looked up._

"**He's acting a little odd I think, **_Notoma murmured to himself. This rat was craftier than the other, not even looking over as he spoke and for a moment Notoma almost thought it wouldn't work. In earnest, he said, _**Almost as if he was hiding something.**

"**Remus would never hide something from me **_**mouse,**__ Remus stated. Despite his confidence, Notoma saw his eyes flickered towards the kitchen doorway._

"**If you say so… after all, what would he have to hide from you, his only brother?**

"_His head snapped up towards Notoma. _**Nothing! We are brothers. What is there to hide?**_ he snarled, appearing in front of Notoma with a deadly sneer._

"**Nothing of course!**_ Notoma gulped. To his relief the rat backed down a few steps, his eyes flickering anxiously towards the kitchen. The tiny brown mouse took a deep breath of air before saying, _**Unless of course he doesn't **_**intend**_** to share the feast with you. He is taking an awful long time getting the food….**

"**Are you saying my brother's trying to poison me mouse!**

"**N-N-No, not at all. What would make you think that?**

"_Neither of them spoke again, the rat hastily taking his seat again, mumbling under his breath as he waiting impatiently for his brothers return. Notoma let out a deep breath, praying his plan had worked. The two waited in a heavy silence for nearly five more minutes before Tataku returned carrying mouthwatering plates filled with the most amazing foods either of the two rats had seen._

"_By now, Remus was extremely anxious, shooting out of his chair and quickly snatching his share of the food from his brother's claws. _**It's about time brother! By now our drinks are cold! **_Tataku glared accusingly, yet said nothing._

"_Notoma looked cautiously between the two as they sat down, glaring in each other's direction. Neither of them moved to eat._

"**Why don't you eat**_** brother**_**? You must be starving,**_ Tataku claimed, nodding towards the food._

"**After you **_**brother.**_

"_At this, neither brother moved, hissing slightly at each other. Notoma looked cautiously between them, not saying a word. Finally, Remus moved, grabbing one of the cups and offering it to his brother. _**Here, have a drink.**

"**No,**_ exclaimed Tataku. Hastily he pointed towards the other cup, the one closer to the Remus. _**Give me that cup. I want yours.**

"**No! This is mine!**

"**I don't care! I want **_**yours.**_

"**Fine then. You want it here!**

"**No! Don't touch it yourself.**_ Tataku glared, looking around until his eyes came to a rest on Notoma who had shrunken low in his chair. With a gnarled hand, he gestured to the mouse. In the next second, the mouse found the ropes that had bound him to the chair tumbling to the floor at his feet. _**Mouse. Bring me that cup.**

"_Trembling Notoma stood, tripping clumsily over his chair in his fear. He reached out, clinging to the table, nearly knocking over both cups. Both rats let out a low hiss, baring their grizzly fangs. _**S-S-Sorry,**_ he squeaked._

"**Watch it mouse!**

"_Notoma reached out, grabbing the closet up to him, is hand lingering over the top for only a spare second too long. Neither rat noticed. Tataku was too anxious, only checking to see Notoma grab the right cup. _**No! Not that cup. Bring me the other you bumbling fool!**

"_Quickly Notoma grabbed the other glass, scampering to his side and gingerly setting down the cup. While he was sure the rat wasn't looking, he let his hand linger over the top of this cup as well, secretly adding in the molasses he grabbed when he stumbled into the table, pouring in a large amount of the deadly toxin. It was one of the only natural rat poisons he knew._

"_Both rats glared at each other, neither one making a move to drink first. Only when Notoma shrank down into his seat again did either shift. _**Well,**_ Remus snarled. _**Aren't you going to drink **_**my**_** wine **_**Tataku?**_

"**After you, Remus.**

"_Notoma let out a pitiful squeak drawing both brothers attention. _**M-M-May-be you could both drink at the same time…?**

"_The rats exchanged a looked. _**Together?**_ Tataku asked. Remus nodded. Without another moment to waist both brought their cups to their lips and took a large gulp. Only after they set their cups down did the bittersweet taste reach their senses. For a second both seemed to choke, grabbing at their neck as hisses of accusation slipped through their lips._

"**B-But I-I th-thought…**_ Tataku sputtered._

"**Po-poison? Wh-When…?**

"_Taking in their last shaky breaths they collapsed onto the table, knocking the glorious plates of untouched food to the ground. Neither one had even had a taste of the spoils they had so foolishly raided the house for. Notoma let out a big sigh, slipping to the floor._

"_In that one night Notoma's life changed forever, but one thing was for sure. No more rats would ever come knocking on his door in the middle of the night. He would tell the story for years and years to come."_

I looked down at Katsu, pausing with my hand in his unruly midnight locks. He was fast asleep under my arm. I smiled. Taking in a deep breath, I sucked in the fresh clean smell of his chakra: lilacs, soft cinnamon, and the faintest trail of sea salt. A tiny bit of wet earth clung to his smell, the only sign of his contact with Zetsu for so long, but it was more than enough to bring a frown to my face.

I knew Zetsu would be glaring at me for the entire time we stayed here if he wasn't meditating, planning ways to kill Katsu with every passing second. Planning ways to make me suffer. Right now, I was doing everything in my power to block all of that out.

Subconsciously I fiddled with Katsu's shaggy hair as I stared across the cave at a blank wall. There were too many questions running through my head, too many problems and not enough solutions.

Sleep would be too risky with Zetsu here. There was no saying if he would stay away from us. For all I knew he could be planning on coming over and ripping Katsu from my arms the second I started to doze. If not, maybe when we woke up we'd find ourselves already at our final destination. We could lose our small chance to escape. No, sleep was much too dangerous.

After a second, I closed my eyes and like Zetsu, I started to meditate.


	8. Into The Darkness

**AN:** Whoo! Alright! update up already :) Told you I'd be getting a few updates out pretty soon here. Thank you for the review too. It really helps remind me to get the chapters out. And this one's a rediculously long one too!Normally I have them done, I just forget to get them out. Heh heh. Oops... Eh, it'll work out eventually!

_Questions: _So I was wondering how you guys would feel if you were stuck in a situation where you had to kill someone for the first time. What would you be thinking? How do you think you'd handle it, honestly?

How would you handle falling in love with someone you know you shouldn't? Would you fight it or just give in?

If you're comfortable in answering I'd love to hear from you guys. It'd help a bit with some of the details, but if not it's no big problem. I pretty much have how the story will unfold. everything just depends on how merciful I'm feeling when I'm telling it. Muwahahahaha! Again with the lameness. I know... lol :D

Let me know what you thik about my slow introduction of the other members. I'm trying to make it gradual and managable so you don't ahve to read a whole chapter packed full of descriptions and crappy stuff I already know that you guys know. (Or at least I'm assuming you know...) But anyways! If you're curious about the time period with the anime and manga then this is sort of in the jump between Shippuden and the regular. You'll be able to tell more the further along this gets because I do touch upon things that are happening. But obviously since my characters not in the _actual _series then she'll be in more of the background. Sad.

Let me know what you think! I love hearing from you!

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><p><strong>Chapter 8<strong>

**Into The Dark**

For a moment, it was dark as I closed my eyes. I couldn't see anything in my mind. Relaxing further, I slowly started to dip into that special state that let me rest and rejuvenate my chakra. As I was waiting, I let my mind slowly run over my fight with Zetsu. I needed to find a way to beat him. No doubt, I would have to fight him again if I was ever going to get Katsu out of here alive and escape. The photographic memory in my head let me scrutinize every move he made, every time he dodged. As close as I looked though, I couldn't find a single weakness I could use. He seemed to move flawlessly. Even when he was fighting.

With a deep breath, I turned instead to what happened before, the sudden burst of energy that surged through me. Whatever it had been maybe if I could use that, direct it better, then I might have a chance to beat him. If I could have only tightened my attacks and allowed less flaws I knew without a second thought that I would have at least been able to hurt him.

I needed to know what triggered it.

After a second, the fight started to fade into the back of my mind for later and I could feel the old memories threatening to come back. Their faces. Cold. Petrified. The looks in their eyes, burned into their brains as they died. I could see it. All of the pain and blood. The death. I could hear their bones breaking and their pleading screams. The anger burning all around. The baby's cries. My breathing hitched slightly picturing the horrified looks on all of their faces as I killed them one by one.

Flinching, I held on to the picture longer this time. I could feel the chakra inside me flowing faster as I forced myself to be pulled back into the painful memory. I felt my hands twitch in my lap.

I wouldn't lose it. No, I was in control.

_Cold sweats broke down her back. Hiroshi let out a whine but it was drowned out by the rhythmic splashes of water curling around her legs as she ran through the tunnel. She could feel the panic, the death chasing her. All light had been cut off leaving her alone._

_Alone._

_So alone._

_Then another blood curling scream—"Ahhhhh!"_

_Panicking, she broke her mind numbing pace, spinning around in the tunnel. For a moment, everything appeared solid black. She stared a second longer, praying she was wrong. Just as her eyes were starting to adjust to the dark Hiroshi's cries broke through her fear._

_Gulping she sprinted off._

_This couldn't be happening. Not to him. Not now._

_It didn't matter which way she was going now. It never did in the first place. She needed to find someone now. Anyone. As long as they could help. Hiroshi cried, nearly forgotten in her arms. His lightweight was starting to burn. None of it mattered. Nothing would matter if she didn't get there fast enough, nothing in the world._

_There was a crash. Jolting up straight her grip around the baby tightened. He let out a weak gurgle in protest, but not all of the sound in world could have caught her attention. Only the dull beating of her heart touched the edges of her mind. Her wide eyes were glued in front of her._

_A mangled body._

_The cruel twist in his arm and the shallow breathing hammered against her heart. His form was held up by several figures behind him by the short strands of hair. Amaya recoiled, covering her mouth with silent tears at the smell of the blood. Even in the dark tunnel, she could make out the features of his face. Shaking her head, she pulled Hiroshi tighter._

_It couldn't be. No, he had promised to protect her forever. He said he would stop them no matter what and that she would never have to be alone again._

"_I-I'm sorry," he sputtered._

My eyes snapped open as the horrors of the memory rocked my body to the core. My breathing was too heavy to focus. I had really _felt_ everything. My chakra seemed to come alive on its own, flowing quickly through my body or torrents of energy. It had been a while since I had such a strong reaction to meditating. I closed my eyes for a second, gathering myself together again. Slowly my breathing calmed down until I was in complete control again.

Outside the traitorous storm raged on, pounding rain and lightning through the air with resounding cracks of thunder shaking the earth.

I became away of Zetsu's heavy gaze again, but it didn't affect me as much anymore. As hard as it was to admit to myself, I had gotten used to the gross feeling of his penetrating eyes studying my every move. Instead of turning and returning the cold look, I faced Katsu instead.

He had fallen asleep next to me using his arms as a pillow. I frowned as he shivered. I quickly reached into my pack and pulled out the blanket I had packed and laid it gently over his shoulders. Forcing a small smile, I played with a loose strand of his raven hair. If only I had a way to get him out of this mess.

Deep red streaks crossed the sky between the black storm clouds as the sun rose. Gradually it melted into a rich orange all the way towards the crisp yellow crest of the sun peaking between the snow-tipped mountains. The warm rays reflected off the crystal puddles from the rain. A mist still fell down from the skies making everything sparkle. Off in the distance the final flashes of the lightning crackled through the sky highlighting every pure color. It was breath taking.

I wasn't sure how long I sat at the mouth of the cave staring out at the sky. Maybe it was hours or maybe only seconds. Katsu hadn't woken up yet, and I didn't dare wonder further up towards the front of the cave where Zetsu guarded. His still presence was enough to let me believe he too was still asleep.

More rain clouds were threatening to come in from the south, but for now, everything was peaceful. When I took a deep breath, I could nearly taste the fresh dew on the leaves even from back in the cave. A strange pressure crushed down on my chest.

Just twenty meters away from me, a man stood out in the rain. His silhouette carved into the dark skies every time his arm would rise and fall in rhythmic motions. I watched carefully with a practiced eye. Small glimmers of shuriken shot from his hand, curving dangerous through the air towards a lone wooden pillar stuck in the ground. The dull thumps barely echoed over to my ears.

With a flash from the sky, he was gone.

A gaping hole tore at my heart.

Shaking my head, I quickly blinked away the picture. There wasn't time to think about things like that now. Again, I reached up towards the crystal hanging from my rope necklace. "_Eih mitsu-torae,_" I whispered, once again retrieving Sarnik from the depth of the crystal. The familiar rush of cool fresh energy brought a sigh from my lips. I held a firm picture of where we were in my mind as the ink started to seep across the paper on its own. Soon I had another map of the surrounding area, this time focused solely around the cave mouth.

We were going to be entering the forest soon if we followed the same path we did yesterday. From there I could only guess how long it would be until we reached our destination. If I was going to be able to do anything about our escape, I would have to do it now. Once we reached the base of the mountain, I would have no choice but to fight Zetsu and try to get away.

A noise made my heart race in my chest. Instantly the image faded back into the paper. I spun around stuffing it into my bag to see the sleepy face of Katsu.

He let out a large yawn, rubbing his eyes. As small smile crossed his face for a split second before he finally noticed the scroll in my hands. "What's that Amaya-chan?" he asked with another yawn.

I glanced down at the only word left on the scroll. Sarnik. Absentmindedly, I reached back up to my necklace, once again returning Sarnik with the same words to retrieve it.

For a second I listened closely to see if I could hear Zetsu's breathing. No matter what happened I could never let him know what this was. When I was satisfied, he was still asleep I silently rolled up the scroll. "I can't really say, but it's a special from my real clan, the Hirokosai Clan. Since I'm the only one left now it's my job to take care of them."

"Them?"

"There are actually three different scrolls altogether. Each one does something different."

I cringed as I felt Zetsu's chakra begin to stir around. He was up.

Katsu gave me a weird look before scratching his neck thoughtfully. He was about to ask another question when I cut him off. "But now isn't the time to talk about it." I jerked my head towards the cave.

Instantly a glare spread across his lips and he turned sharply towards the woods with his arms crossed. "Can't stand that thing," he spat.

On cue, Zetsu stepped out of the mouth of the cave and into the light. The Venus flytrap on his shoulders seemed to shift slightly making me recoil. With a single look at me to remind me of our "conversation" from earlier, he started walking, the unnatural sway of his arm still proof to his temporary hindrance. Katsu and I shared one final look, showing the depth of both of our hatred before we followed.

With every step, I could feel my anxiety gnarling at my stomach. I tried hard to keep focused on what I was going to do. Zetsu's strides were long and melodic. So much more calculated and precise than mine. He walked slightly off to my right while Katsu walked as far as possible on my left. It wouldn't be much space, but I would have no choice.

I had to make this work.

I gulped as we reached a turn in the path. We were definitely going the way we needed to. At this pace, we would be entering the forest within the hour. Cautiously I stole a glance at Zetsu before carefully starting to gather chakra in my right hand. Since his right arm was hurt, the chakra receptor in his left still damaged, I should be able to land a blow if I moved fast enough and maybe feinted an attack. His head shifted slightly in my direction making my chest tighten.

The edge of the trail came into view as we rounded the turn. I could see the mile tall trees.

Katsu looked up with deep sea green eyes.

I couldn't breathe.

I didn't even feel it as I raised my arm up, building up the chakra. This was my one shot. My eyes turned towards Zetsu. They felt too heavy. Too slow. His back was still turned to me, just a little bit ahead of my hand. Just a little bit farther.

In one smooth motion Zetsu turned, twisting my arm behind my back at the wrist. His knee connected hard with my ribs with a solid crack. I spun in order to keep from breaking my arm out of instinct. There wasn't even time to feel the pain. The last thing I saw before everything went back was Katsu's shouting face as my world slowly went black.

* * *

><p>"<em>Have you finished draining the woman's chakra?"<em>

"_Hai. I'm finished. She should have just enough chakra to assume it hadn't replenished yet."_ There was silence for a moment._ "Konan, why do we need this onna anyway?"_

"_She's here to deal with Hayato and the others."_

"Her?"

"_Yes. You may get back to Itachi-san now."_

* * *

><p>The distinct feeling of pain woke me up. I groaned, protesting against the continuous beating I had been getting since my adventure started, but I didn't have time to complain about the pain radiating from my ribs. Quickly I sent some spare chakra to my injuries, happy to find that it was only a deep bruise, not another cracked rib. My body would break if Zetsu kept this up, not that I gave him a good reason to stop anytime soon. Eventually, I'd get past the point of healing myself. It took me a moment to notice that my pack was gone along with all of the kunai and shuriken in my leg pouches. Everything was gone.<p>

My hand snapped up to my neck, panic sinking in until I felt the cool even smoothness of my hexagonal crystal resting softly between the swell of my breasts. Hirokosai Clan's secrets were still safe.

Curiously remembering the dream I had with the voices, I dipped into my chakra supply, knowing fully well it should be nearly completely replenished by now. I cringed. Not even half. Whoever those people were, they certainly did a good job at leaving me just enough chakra to get through the day. I'd have to be careful.

I opened my eyes slowly to see I wasn't up in the mountains anymore or in the forest. Everything was dark. There was the telltale musky smell only a cave could hold in the air. Curiously, I turned my head to see a couple of stone pillars up near the wall and a single candle over in the corner casting eerie shadows onto the walls. A lone door stood in the middle of the rock with a latch covering up two mall metal bars near the top. I turned again to realize I was lying alone on the hard cold floor.

Faintly I felt my heart racing against my chest. My mind instantly flashed to Katsu. Jerking up I shouted, not even realizing I opened my mouth. "Katsu!" My voice echoed off the rock walls making me cringe.

Instantly there were soft footsteps coming towards me. Gasping slightly, I turned around looking for any sign of Katsu. My eyes scanned the area again. Nothing. My heart fluttered violently in my chest making it harder and harder to breathe. A soft click as the doorknob turned caught my attention. My eyes snapped over to the figure coming through the door.

Two golden-specked grey eyes met mine emotionlessly as a woman walked calmly into the room. Tensing, I drew back slightly only to feel an ache spread down my spine from my neck. I flinched slightly, making sure she didn't see. I stared hard into her blank eyes while she looked me over. All I could think about was where Katsu was.

"Follow me," she ordered softly. As she pulled her right hand off the door, I could see a strange white ring on her middle finger. I noticed in disdain that she was wearing the same black cloak Zetsu had been wearing, covered in swirling red clouds. A white origami flower was in her short blue hair, adding contrast to the single piercing in her lower lip. I held her gaze, fighting back the fear growing inside me.

"Where's Katsu?" I asked trembling slightly. No doubt if she worked for the same people as Zetsu then she was already aware of my weakness.

She stared back at me with an unreadable gaze and I could feel the hairs stand on the back of my neck. Instead of answering, she spoke again in a soft even voice. "Follow me."

Unaware of what I was doing, I silently rose to my feet, testing my movement for any pain. Inside I was ready to break down but I would never, _never_ give these monsters the satisfaction of seeing it. The woman walked in front of me down endless series of tunnels, each with supporting columns of rock for support on with side with stalagmites and stalactites jutting up and down around us. Each lit with candles every seven feet. I counted. In my head, I made a mental map of the number of corridors and tunnels that branched off from here as we walked.

Everything about this place seemed foreign and cruel. The natural chakra radiating from the rock and the thick, damp air shifted uneasily as if none but evil presences lurked here. Scents of burning ash, deep-sea muck, mud, and slow decay filled me here, evidence that the chakras I felt belonged to less than role model citizens did. I looked for anything that might tell me where I would be—any flowers or mosses, even insects that might be able to give me a general location. I wouldn't be able to summon Sarnik here to tell me of my destination without first knowing where I was. The only form of life here seemed to be the people who lived here.

I never saw another soul.

In my mind I wasn't sure what I was thinking or what I felt. All I knew was that I had to get away from this place and find Katsu. Somehow, I would get through this. I had to. For Katsu.

"In here," she stated, stopping in front of a single brown door. I looked at her briefly, but she showed no intention of moving. With a soft deep breath, I opened the door and walked into a room that would probably change my life forever.

It was dark; my eyes still hadn't quiet adjusted to such low lighting. Inside Zetsu's tall form seemed to be talking to a strange man sitting on the long central table while a man hidden over in the shadows of a pillar listened. The strange man's face was covered with an orange swirling mask that revealed only one eye. Four chairs sat around the table, all unused. I looked carefully at Zetsu, hoping to see the grimace and cringe from his sabotaged arm, but to my disappointment, it appeared as if someone had healed it already. Katsu was nowhere to be seen.

Their conversation stopped abruptly as I walked in and Konan followed, closing the door. I quickly swallowed back the strange feeling in my stomach being under three cruel gazes, one of which I knew more than any others. I held an even gaze when I glanced over towards Zetsu. I wouldn't show how much the sight of him revolted me or how much I detested even having to be near him for what he had done. Instead, I turned my chin up, looking over towards the other two.

"So this is the girl that caused you so much trouble Zetsu-Sempi?" the orange masked man giggled in a high-pitched voice. He let out a long laugh, whipping invisible tears from his one eye.

Biting my tongue, I stopped myself from wondering how someone who sounded so innocent was involved with a monster such as Zetsu. In a small light of hope, I wished he too was a prisoner like me. Maybe then, I could somehow form an alliance and escape.

"_**Be quiet Tobi,**_" Zetsu's deep rough voice growled earning the hairs on the back of my neck to stand up. He shifted slightly as his softer voice corrected himself. "_But Tobi is a good boy_."

The debate quickly silenced as the man hidden in the shadows stepped forward. The woman next to me stepped forward leaving me by the door alone to approach the man. For a split second, I thought about making a run for it. If I really tried, I would be able to outrun them as long as none of the three was any faster than Zetsu had been. Two things kept me from running: I didn't know an escape and Katsu. I could never leave Katsu.

At the thought of his name, I shifted ever so slightly in dread, but it was enough to catch the eye of the man still hidden by the shadows. The woman leaned passively against one of the pillars near him.

Nevertheless, they weren't Seekers.

"Tell me your name," the man demanded in a monotone voice. I stared hard into his light purple eyes, seeing several rings around his small pupils.

"You should know it by now," I answered boldly.

I could feel the temperature in the room drop a few degrees. All eyes focused intently on me making my skin started to crawl under such intense gazes, but I refused to let it show, keeping my chin high and my voice steady.

For the first time I noticed my bag from one of the straps showing form the closest chair with its back to me. I nearly wanted to walk forward and see what they had taken out, but instincts told me not to. This would be a deadly game if any of these people could be strong enough to have Zetsu as their subordinate. I would have to act carefully if I wanted to get Katsu back unharmed. I didn't have enough chakra to go picking fights. And I knew they knew it.

"Such strong words for someone with a lot to lose." I didn't dare move. "Tobi, why don't you go bring in the boy?"

Instantly Tobi leapt off the table and bounded over to the door with a strange mix between a squeal and a gasp. "Yes! Tobi'll bring back the boy. Tobi knows right where he is!"

My blood ran cold seeing him leave the room. More than anything, I wanted to follow him. I wanted to see Katsu so badly. I swallowed nervously, but forced myself to turn back to the mystery man with a blank expression. He studied my face thoroughly before speaking.

"Zetsu's told me how fond you are of the boy." I stole a glance at Zetsu wishing I could show my resentment for him now more than ever. In my head I spat out as many insults and curses I could think of. "Maybe you'll be more willing to cooperate with him here."

I remained silent, turning my gaze towards my bag. There wasn't long to wait. The door opened again this time with Tobi nearly dragging Katsu through the door. His eyes were wide, jumping over everything as he pulled hard against Tobi's grip. My heart skipped a beat seeing his face.

"Katsu," I murmured, fighting with my composure.

At the sound of my voice caught his attention. His head whipped in my direction as tears formed in his eyes. I bit the inside of my cheek to keep from snarling. A long deep bruise spread down under his right eye to his jaw. When he moved, he seemed to avoid moving his left arm. Livid, I glared over at Zetsu, feeling the anger inside of me begging to let me rip him apart piece by piece. He met my gaze evenly, his golden eyes deep and void of expression, almost calling me out, begging me to make a scene.

"A-Amaya-chan!" Katsu shouted, tugging against Tobi's grip. Tobi let out a startled cry as Katsu suddenly spun, punching him in the shoulder to make him let go. Surprised, he did, letting Katsu free for a split second.

I opened my arms as he ran over to me. The force of him running into me nearly sent me tumbling over, but I held on tightly pressing his head into my bosom and cradling him close. I could feel him trembling in my arms as he started to cry. His dark blue eyes were wide and helpless as he shook back and forth slightly. Stroking his hair lovingly, I turned my gaze back to the unknown man, trying hard not to show my relief Katsu was even alive.

"I assume you've been told everything about the trip here?" It was more like a statement, but I couldn't stand still until I knew.

His purple eyes stared hard into me. "Yes."

Quickly turning my attention back to Katsu, I curled him closer to my body, quickly seeping my chakra inside him at every chakra barrier available. A lightly blue glow started to cover our bodies. Katsu startled, pulling back for a second but I held him close stroking his hair. "Shhh, Katsu. Everything's ok now," I murmured gently in his ear. I smiled faintly as Katsu relaxed, laying his head against me and closed his eyes. I dipped in further, directing my energy to his arm and face to try to heal his pain. Anything I could do now would help.

"Oh, wow! Look Leader-sama! She's glowing!" Tobi shouted excitedly.

Looking over at Tobi, I tried to guess if he really didn't know what I was doing or if he was acting clueless for a different reason. For a moment, I let my glare slip onto my face. Even if there was a chance he could be another prisoner, I couldn't stand thinking how anyone could beat a child.

"Amaya," the man murmured to himself. The woman next to him glanced over at me with a blank look, but I could tell she knew something even with such an emotionless glance.

Ignoring them both, I quickly finished healing Katsu before turning back towards them. "Where have you taken us?"

"You don't have a reason to know unless you accept my offer."

"Offer?"

The man stepped forward, revealing his pale face and bright orange hair. I wanted to step back in surprise, but somehow I managed to contain myself. I'd never seen a face anything like his before. Piercings lined the bridge of his nose, along with more trailing completely down the sides of both ears. A single butterfly piecing decorated his lower lip. The very sight of his face made Katsu curl deeper into my arms. It was his eyes thought that cut into me. Dead. Hollow. Like they had given up their reason for living a long time ago.

"Join the Akatsuki."

My body went stiff as his words rang in my ear. My eyes narrowed. Akatsuki. The name sounded vaguely familiar. If I remembered correctly, they were supposed to be a group of criminals from every village no one could beat. There was no reason for me even to meet these people, let alone be important enough to anyone to be offered to join. I wasn't an S-rank ninja. The only horrors and tragedies I caused were in the past and they would stay there. I wouldn't become one of those people again. No one knew about that. They must really need me for something if they were stooping low enough to ask me, a nobody. Therefore, there must be a reason for me to join, something only I could do. In that case, they would only be using me until this problem, whatever it may be, was gone and then I too would be another problem they would have to get rid of.

I faintly recalled the conversation I overheard when I was still knocked out.

_Hayato._ They needed me to get rid of whoever that man was.

"Why do you want me to kill Hayato?" I asked, carefully watching for any type of reaction. I wasn't disappointed. At the very mention of his name nearly everyone tense, their eyes narrowing in on me as if I had discovered something I shouldn't have known. I watched with particular interest as the leaders expression mixed with disdain, his lip curling up in disgust. His eyes, though. His eyes seemed to glow for a second. Almost as if I had exceeded his expectation.

"He has become … quite a nuisance to us."

_That's all?_ I frowned, knowing very well that he wasn't telling me anything. I sighed, weighing my options. In my head, I instantly started to form a plan. If they needed me then I could manipulate them for a little bit. Maybe enough to gain some freedom. It wasn't a lot to go on, but if I was right, I might be able to use this.

With a sigh, I looked back towards the man, studying the look in his eyes. "I refuse."

Zetsu shifted, staring at me. My skin crawled under his gaze. I was too aware of his movements from the corner of my eye, watching to see if he would step forward to make a move. Instead, I kept my eyes on the "leader" of theirs, the one man that would no doubt be stronger than everyone else would be here. His face was blank. Yet, if I looked close enough I could always see a difference in the way he stood, lightly tense, as if he was reading deep into me.

"That's not an option."

I gauged him for a moment before speaking. "All offers have multiple options. The only question is whether or not you want the less favorable one," I stated slowly. "I refuse. I cannot join an organization that won't tell me the truth and views the only possible solutions to problems as death."

He dipped his head ever so slightly, motioning to Tobi. "Yes Leader-sama! Tobi is a good boy!" Tobi shouted. For a second I stared at him not sure what he meant, but I tensed when I saw him bound towards us. "I'll get Katsu-san!"

Snarling, I pulled yanked Katsu behind me, instantly feeling my defensive instincts kick in. He wasn't going to take Katsu away again. He wasn't going to touch him. None of them were. Picture of what Zetsu had done to Katsu, the cruel and heartless pain he was put through by these men. I my chest tightened and my blood ran cold.

The ground started to tremble under my feet. Small rocks were kicked up, clattering loudly against the floor. Before Tobi could even stop, the ground shot up locking his feet and immobilizing him. He let out a terrified scream. Keeping Katsu behind me I turned defensively to where I could see the other three clearly, keeping a hard expression on my face.

"So this is her power," the man murmured, bringing back the memories of all of the voices, all of the men I had killed.

"No one touches the boy," I threatened darkly.

Zetsu was about to step forward, but the man spoke before he could. "There's no need Zetsu. She has no choice but to join. If not, the boy will die."

Frowning, I tried hard to stop my heart from skipping a beat hearing the threat. Every part of me wanted to lash out and rip him apart. I wanted to feel his blood and watch as the life drained out of his eyes. I wanted to kill. Somehow, I managed to breathe. Closing my eyes for a moment, I forced back the thoughts. I had to be smart.

I was in control. I wasn't going to lose it again.

For a second I looked back at Katsu. His eyes were wide as he stared at me. It dawned on me that this was his first time even seeing me get close to fighting. In our village, I never fought anyone. There was a reason for that, one I couldn't help but fear as he stared at me with his large eyes. I scared people when I fought. I was afraid to look in his eyes and see that he thought I was a monster.

"How did you do that?" he gasped quietly.

Confused I looked down, seeing his wide sea green eyes staring at me in awe. I let out a weak laugh before remembering to compose myself. "Later," I murmured.

In my head, I smiled. I was right about them. Any other time I knew that they would have killed one of us instantly for attacking them. They needed me for something. All I needed to know now was if I could use this to escape.

With a deep breath at looked at the four of them. Cautiously I released the rock around Tobi's legs, forcing myself to shove the evil voices in my head back to where they belonged. "Yay! Tobi's free. What a scary jutsu!" he shouted, rubbing his ankles furiously. "Ouch! They hurt."

"On one condition," I stated, keeping my head high.

The leader watched me blankly and I realized he was waiting for me to finish.

"The boy gets to stay with me."

Immediately after the words left my mouth I knew the leader was going to refuse. From the slightly dip in his head to the slight twitch of his hand, everything pointed to know. A lump lodged itself in my chest thinking Katsu was going to be separated from me again. Then to my surprise, he nodded. "Once you have completed your mission," he confirmed.

The tension in the room seemed to lighten a little, but not enough for me to feel comfortable. I pulled Katsu back out where I could keep an eye on him, watching the four carefully, and shoving Tobi's mindless rants to the back of my mind for later. I was still curious about the … man? Boy? I didn't quite know. He was different, that was for sure. The only question I needed to answer was _why_ he was so different. However, what threw me off the most was feeling Zetsu's gaze burning into me, so intense, so penetrating I could feel it peering into my very being. His gaze hadn't left me since I said no to their leader.

Their leader—my leader now I guess—turned to me, his composure still hidden. His ringed purple eyes stared emotionlessly at me. "My name is Pein."

For the first time the full weight of what I was doing hit me like a ton of bricks. And I quivered, but never once broke my facade.

"Zetsu bring her cloak," Pein ordered.

He nodded stiffly. My eyes widened as suddenly he began to sink into the floor. In one fluid motion, his feet and cloak merged with the ground followed quickly by his upper body until he was completely engulfed in the ground. Katsu let out a startled gasp. Before I could blink, Zetsu was gone.

"What the hell was that?" Katsu exclaimed. Frowning, I wacked him roughly over the head. He let out cry, spinning around to glare at me. "What the hell was that for!" Again, I smacked him over the head. "Hey!"

I spun him around, pulling him into my arms where he couldn't talk anymore. He protested shoving against me for a minute but eventually gave up. I snickered silently. He would only ever give up for me; no one else ever would see the end of it. We waited like that silently for a moment, standing perfectly still with Pein and the woman who had yet to give her name.

After a second, Katsu murmured something into my shirt. I pulled back for a second to see the confused and worried look on his face. Leaning down lightly I rested my forehead on his, letting my chakra seep into him again, this time soothing him. Here wouldn't be the place to talk about this. I gave him a smile as he squirmed at my touch. He still didn't like when I was this close to him around others.

"What's going on?" he whined, but I quickly shushed him. "_Nee-chan!_ You're so evil!" he squealed.

I smiled, but refrained from answering.

I hugged Katsu closer, kissing the top of his head. He looked up with a weak smile, the bruise on his face less prominent now. Inside of the dark purple, it had faded into an ugly yellow-ish brown. It should be completely gone by the morning, whenever that was. I touched it gently, watching his eyes close to see if there was still any pain. When I was satisfied, I wouldn't need to heal him more I turned again back to Pein letting my content face fall back into the unreadable mask.

Not a moment later, a Venus flytrap began emerging from the ground. I jumped, squeezing Katsu slightly against me. I stared fascinated as his tall strong form quickly started growing from the ground, stretching up and out until his feet appeared and the ground seemed to fall back into place. Despite my hatred for the man and revulsion, I couldn't help but scanning his body to see if everything was as it should be. He just came up out of the ground. Like it was water! A slight blush covered my face when I caught his golden eyes and I realized my curiosity had been discovered. He walked towards me, his face blank and held out a single cloak. It matched the ones everyone wore perfectly. Zetsu retreated as soon as I took it out of his hands. I felt the material slowly, feeling how light it was.

"Return the boy," Pein continued.

"No," I growled dropping the cloak.

Pein took a step forward. My eyes narrowed. Not wasting a second, I tugged Katsu off to my right side, away from all of them. He pulled back from my grip. Without thinking I locked my hand around his wrist, refusing even to let go when he tugged away in surprise. My heart had started to pound again. They were going to take him away even when I did choose to join.

Before I knew what was happening, Tobi vanished. I spun, looking behind me only to find his grip on Katsu before he jerked him out of my grip and vanished again with Katsu right along his side. _No!_ I cried, spinning desperately to find where he had appeared. Somehow, Tobi and Katsu both stood all the way across the room, Katsu's eyes wide in shock mirroring my own.

In my confusion, I felt someone appear behind me. Reacting out of instinct, I spun just in time to block the blow to the back of my neck, no doubt aimed to knock me out. I pulled back realizing it was Zetsu, quickly feeling my heart start to pound. Flashes of his throwing me around like a child, crushing and breaking me flickered across my mind for the split second. It was all the time he needed. He quickly reached out, grabbing my left arm and twisting it behind my back at the sight of the opening.

_Shit._

I gasped trying to steady myself. I hung limply in his arms, my body pulled back tightly against his chest as he lifted me off the ground slightly, just enough to keep from breaking my arm. The dull pain throbbed through me. I could feel the edges of his body against mine, nearly his heart beating softly against my twisted shoulder blades.

"Amaya-chan!" Katsu shouted, racing towards us, but Tobi was quick to cut him off, quickly immobilizing him. I panted for air, unable to do anything as Tobi quickly knocked him out. "Nee-chan…" he gasped, his eyes going wide before closing.

Before I could stop them, Tobi disappeared taking Katsu with him.

I caused him to get hurt again. I could feel tears coming to my eyes, but I would never show them. I'd never show any of these bastards.

"The boy will be kept safe, but you will not be able to know where he in order to keep you from trying to escape. He will only be a distraction to you until you complete your mission," Pein stated. "You will not be known as a member of our organization, but as a subordinate and will do what I say, no matter what it may be. For now, Konan will show you your new room. Understood?"

I clamped my mouth shut, glaring at him. Zetsu's grip tightened to the point of snapping my wrist, warning me I should answer, but I refused.

Pein turned away lifting his arm slightly towards Konan. She looked up at him. "Take her to her room."

Unable to hold still any longer I sent out my chakra into the ground, quickly using it to force the ground up between Zetsu and me. Surprised, he stumbled back a step, instantly dropping me. I landed softly on me feet, letting the rock sink back to into the level floor as I clenched my fists. I didn't need that strange power I felt earlier to fight and I didn't need anyone to force me around like a weak tool. "I'll walk," I spat in Zetsu's direction before walking out of the door.

Konan walked out a second later, silently leading the way through the miles of tunnels. A deep pressure weighted down on my chest as we walked away.

I tried again to memorize and follow each turn and step we took, but soon enough I lost focus, not having enough zeal to try and push through knowing Katsu wasn't going to be there. It was a while before we finally stopped in front of a solid oak door among the seemingly hundred in this place. She stopped, stepping aside to let me in. I didn't look up as I walked past her. The second I stepped in, I felt her close the door behind me with a distinct click of a lock.

I let out a deep sigh.

The room was small, only large enough for the bed in the corner, a wooden nightstand next to it, and a small dresser on the other side of the room. There was one desk covered in inks and papers, presumably from some other past member or kidnapped person that'd been forced to stay in this very room. It made me wonder how many people they had done this too. It had been cleared out of all of the stalagmites and stalactites at least giving me the freedom to walk without having to worry about spearing myself on a rock, but it lacked any comforting feelings that I had back at my house in the woods. A single candle lit up the room, showing several others placed on a shelf in the nightstand. One other door led out of the room, most likely into a small bathroom. The only thing missing were the bars on the door.

"That's strange."

I noticed my pack was sitting on my bed, which was odd. I was sure I had seen it in one of the chairs when I was talking to Pein. When I checked inside, I was surprised to find everything just as I had left it. All of the scrolls and weapons had been replaced along with both my blanket and the small amount of mocuba I had packed along with my clothes. Curiously, I counted all of my shuriken and kunai, shocked to find them all here. The only thing missing was the remains of the food I had brought. All of the bread was gone.

After a second of standing thoughtlessly, I decided to make the best of my room. Carefully taking everything out, I placed it either in the desk drawers or in the dresser. Even more surprising when I opened the dresser drawers I found more of my own clothing, things I knew for sure I had left back at the house. Yet, there it was, folded neatly in the drawer as if they had been there all along. Curiously, I took out a shirt, smelling it. Appalled, I realized it smelled exactly like my house with something else Zetsu I realized. It was the same type of musk that was in his soap, lingering on my things. He must have just recently gotten them, maybe the day before. But why?

It could be worse though, I guessed. At least now, I would have clean clothes to wear without having to wear that cursed cloak.

Everything I could seem to need was here. Out of curiosity, I walked into the bathroom, noticing I had not only a toothbrush but also soap and shampoo, most likely from my house as well. Suddenly I felt too out of place here. All of my things were here, but it didn't feel anything like home.

I paused for a second before deciding to leave the Hirokosai Scrolls sealed within my necklace. It was too dangerous to take them out when there could be someone watching.

Something fell onto the floor as I pulled my pack off the bed, and chucked it in the corner where it would be out of the way. Pausing, I glanced around to see it was my cloak. Now that was wrong. I knew I had dropped it in that room and hadn't picked it up. The hairs on the back of my neck stood up as the room suddenly got colder. What was going on here?

I could feel someone watching me. Spinning around I scanned the room. My eyes moved nervously over the room, scanning the walls and the floor. For a split second, I nearly thought I saw something fading into the wall, but that was impossible.

This day was starting to get to my head.

With a deep sigh, I stared at the cloak for a long time. Finally, I decided to set it on top of the dresser, in case I needed to slip into quickly when someone came to get me. _If_ someone ever came to get me.

Checking the room again, I sat down cautiously on my bed fiddling with my necklace, debating on which was more important, secrecy or knowledge. Eventually I decided it wasn't as if it could hurt revealing Sarnik again. Whoever or whatever seemed to be watching me appeared to have left. Carefully I opened the seal again, murmuring, "_Eih mitsu-torae."_ The seal on my necklace broke again and I revolved Sarnik.

I cleared my eyes of everything, unrolling it to show the blank page. It wasn't hard to focus.

Silently I released my chakra into the scroll, picturing all of the tunnels and paths Konan and I had walked along, picturing every detail of it. It wouldn't be much to go off, but it should at least be enough to give me the layout of their base.

Instantly inked seeped onto the page from deep inside with the slight touch of my chakra, flowing across the paper in thick dark lines. Bits and pieces of the base started to fall into place. I could feel the ink swirl around, marking where I had walked, the turns I had made to get here alone with where I had been before. To my surprise, however, tiny writing appeared by each room showing lists of many things, giving me information on all of the rooms I had never been in before. Soon, a complete map of their entire headquarters sat in front of me. It was much larger than I thought it would have been.

I marked where I was located with my finger, then focusing on an image of Katsu. A thin line of ink reacted to my thoughts, tracing through the hallways down to a secluded room. The word "Katsu" quickly floated up onto the paper. Two hallways away from me. That wasn't too far. If somehow I could get out of this cell, it wouldn't be too hard to find him as long as I was careful.

Turning my attention to the exit, I focused on widening the map to a bird's eye view to find where we were. If the map had filled in the parts that I hadn't known inside their headquarters than there was no reason Sarnik wouldn't be able to show me what surrounded it, especially if I had possibly been around here before. Instantly the hideout fell back into a small dot on the paper, everything zooming by as if I was flying up into the sky. The map showed all of the Great Villages. We were located somewhere deep in the Fire Nation. That wasn't good. The Fire Nation was far away from the Chisenochi Clan. It would take a long time to go home. Maybe instead of heading back, I would just find a new place, somewhere closer where it could be just Katsu, full of the chance of a new start with new faces with me.

I was struck with the thought that if we ever did manage to escape I would have to live in hiding for the rest of my life, not that I wasn't hiding already from the Seekers. I didn't have a home anymore. An empty hole opened up in my chest.

Again the mapped zoomed in to the base as I frowned. By the looks of it, most of the base was unused. The only parts labeled with uses were the rooms closest to the single exit. After the fifth hallway, the rooms slowly fell off.

Satisfied, I put rolled up Sarnik again, replacing it safely back in my necklace where it would be disturbed. With a grin, I quickly changed into a nightshirt before slipping into bed. The second my head hit the pillow my eyes fell back on the ceiling.

_I'm coming Katsu. Just you wait._

If Pein thought he could keep me in here for long, he was wrong. I would show him. When the time was right, I was going to bust out of here.


	9. Crystal Tears

**AN: **Sorry for the long delay between my last update. I was out of town for Spring Break and didn't have time to bpost before I left. And sadly, this is one of the shorter chapters. Well, for me anyways. I'm not a big fan of chapters. It drives me crazy enough only being able to read any of the super awesome amazing stories I read on here one chapter at a time, let alone when the chapters are short and leave you hanging!

Anyways, hope you like this. A little bit more of Amaya's past is revealed here and just why she can't forgive herself for her past. Honestly, I don't know if I would ever be able to forgive myself if I ever did anything like this. There's a bit more Zetsu and Amaya action in here too when they don't want to rip each others faces off. Yay! They might be finally warming up to each other :D

Or are they?

Muwahahahaha!

On my last note, thanks fo much for the reviews you guys are giving me, for the few of you guys that are. I'm slightly bummed I'm not getting more, but I guess I just have to roll with the hand I'm dealt.

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 9<strong>

**Crystal Tears**

_It didn't matter which way she was going now. It never did in the first place. She needed to find someone now. Anyone. As long as they could help. Hiroshi cried, nearly forgotten in her arms. His lightweight was starting to burn. None of it mattered. Nothing would matter if she didn't get there fast enough, nothing in the world._

_There was a crash. Jolting up straight her grip around the baby tightened. He let out a weak gurgle in protest, but not all of the sound in world could have caught her attention. Only the dull beating of her heart touched the edges of her mind. Her wide eyes were glued in front of her._

_A mangled body._

_The cruel twist in his arm and the shallow breathing hammered against her heart. His form was held up by several figures behind him by the short strands of hair. Amaya recoiled, covering her mouth with silent tears at the smell of the blood. Even in the dark tunnel, she could make out the features of his face. Shaking her head, she pulled Hiroshi tighter._

_It couldn't be. No, he had promised to protect her forever. He said he would stop them no matter what and that she would never have to be alone again._

"_I-I'm sorry," he sputtered._

_Amaya's eyes watered as she stared at the body of her father. She could see the blood running down his face, the sickly way his arms bent and the blood trailing down from shuriken sticking out of his body. Her father. They got him._

"_Aw, look what I've got here, the old man's daughter. How touching," one of the ninja behind him sneered, kicking him in the back. He let out a cry, falling down onto the cold hard floor. It in the dark she could see his eyes close._

"_How about it Sweetie?" another asked, ripping him back up by his messy blonde hair._

_He didn't even try to move. This couldn't' be right. Her dad would never give up like this. He was strong and brave. He would never give up._

"_Want to see your daddy die?"_

_Without a second to answer, he pulled out a kunai, slashing across his throat. Gasping, Amaya stumbled forward, but it was too late. She could see the life leave her father's eyes as he hit the ground with a heavy thud. She could see her father die in front of her eyes. The last person she had left._

_Hiroshi barely could move in her arms, still trying to push away with the desperate struggle only an infant could have. He was left forgotten, crushed against her chest._

_No, no it couldn't be. This couldn't be right. The Seekers weren't supposed to win. They were the bad guys, evil. They weren't ever supposed to get her father. She shook her head melodically casting away the sight in front of her, holding Hiroshi tighter and tighter. The baby's face was smothered into her shoulder, unable to get any air. This couldn't be her father. He said that he would protect her. He told her he take care of her._

"_No," she murmured, feeling the tears run down her face._

_She couldn't deny it. Her knees went weak seeing her father dead, his blood pooling around him. The gaping hole in her chest tore further. First mother and then father. Everyone around her. The empty void crushed down all around her. Gasping for breath, she stared up into the eyes of the murders. Their smirks stuck an unknown cord in her._

"_Looks like you made her angry," the first spoke._

"_Good. I like a bit of a fight when I kill someone."_

_Energy burst around her cracking the air that surrendered her weak body. How dare they? All of them. Murderers. _Seekers._ Twisted cold-blooded freaks stealing everything away from her._

_Suddenly everything that had seemed to dark to her blazed in light. Her pupils morphed, shaping into oval bulbs in the center of her wide tear-filled eyes as her body trembled and quaked. Their movements twisted in front of her, slowly twisting until everything was so slow. They seemed to stop in front of her._

_In her rage, she screamed, collapsing in on herself. The sound cut through the air. The men flew back as everything around them started to change. The ground shook. Cracks cut through the cement walls of the tunnel, webbing up the walls over their head. Loose rocks crashed down, splashing up in the water all around them, some landing on them._

_Everything was alive. Everything moved. All she wanted to do was kill them. Kill them all for what they had done._

_Their faces. Cold. Petrified. The looks in their eyes, burned into their brains as they died. She watched it. All of the pain and blood. The death. Their voices and deaths screamed in her head. It was pounding. Things were too sharp, too vivid. Each detail overloaded her brain, but she couldn't stop. She didn't want it to. Their cries, their blood curling screams were fueling her. She wanted to see them bleed._

_The last one fell with a splash in the ankle deep water that filled the underground tunnel. Dust and debris fell down from above as the last of her anger drained out._

_Her father…._

_He was gone._

…_dead._

_Her entire body trembled at the sight in front of her. For the first time she could see it._

_She killed them._

_Horrified she sunk to her knees, aware that Hiroshi had finally stopped crying. With a sob, she released her grip slightly on the poor baby, taking in her face, but what she saw made her scream in agony. He was dead. She suffocated her little brother._

"_N-No, no, no!" she cried, tearing at her hair. "Oh God. I-I'm so s-s-s-sorry."_

_Words couldn't describe the pain she felt knowing she had turned into one of them. She killed like a Seeker. Her eyes stared hard at the mangled corpse of her father as she cradled her baby brother back into her arms, sobbing hysterically for what she had done. They were gone._

_Father said that he would always be there._

Shooting out of bed, I clutched at my chest gasping as the fire shot through me. I sucked in another pained breath my lungs caught fire, burning through my body hotter than embers, ripping through my arms and legs, tearing apart my flesh like molten lava corroding away my very being.

It wasn't possible, the pain. It couldn't be real. The fire blazed hotter and hotter. I couldn't breathe. Gasping I clutched my throat trying to cut off the fire.

Clutching for the kunai under my pillow I held it out in the air, hand trembling too much. In the dark, I could see enemies, millions of enemies, the men I had killed, the men I would be forced to kill. Through the blurs and chocks ripping from inside of me, I could see them all slithering closer. Seekers. Killers. All of them inched closer and closer. I couldn't breathe.

As soon as I pulled out my kunai out I realized what it was. With a shaky breath the burning slowly subsided.

It was just another memory.

I let out a choked sigh, letting my arms drop helplessly to my sides. Everything shook as I stared off into nothing. I didn't think I could see anything if I tried. I could feel the unbearable weight of killing my brother fall back onto my shoulders, knowing I killed the one person my father trusted me to protect when Seekers came to murder him. The tears fell heavily down my cheeks as I silently cried. Nothing in the world could ever wipe away that fact. I killed the last person I ever had in the world. Nothing.

The kunai in my hand was heavy. I couldn't tear my eyes off the cold, sharp metal. Would I kill someone with this two?

"_**You talk in your sleep**__," _a rough quiet voice stated making my heart batter against my chest.

Clasping the kunai again, I snapped it shakily back into the air, pointing towards the figure standing against the wall. My eyes never focused. He shook and twisted in front of me, bending into three different people before smashing back into one. Quickly I whipped the tears from my eyes, trying to breathe normally. A second later, I recognized him. It was impossible to forget those two pupil-less golden eyes.

"W-What?" I choked out.

"_You talk in your sleep_," he repeated, staring deep into me. "_**You're an annoying sleeper, you know that?" **_his other half asked making me huff. "_**Scared you though, didn't I? Ha!"**_

Startled, I pulled back, placing the kunai back under my pillow. I was surprised to see him considering he had finished his mission. I was a prisoner here. He never had to see me again if he didn't want to. In the corners of my mind, I wish he wouldn't.

Maybe if he would have said something like this at a different time I would have thought it was very strange that he actually seemed to enjoying teasing me, not that it was too surprising, but right now, I couldn't care less what he did. I'd stop caring about him the moment he brought Katsu to this place.

Taking his insult to heart, I stared down. I was too bare, too breakable now to fight off anything he said. In my head, I kept seeing the images over and over again, seeing the precious life force drain out of the men and feeling me crush their future.

Barely able to look up, I stared helplessly into Zetsu's eyes. I fidgeted nervously under his gaze. It felt like he could see everything about me. He probably could. "W-Wh-What…" I paused wetting my lips. "What d-di-did I s-say?"

He stared at me for a long time, a mixed look on his face. The black half mumbled something I couldn't understand that the white half didn't seem to like. They debated quietly among themselves, most of the time seeming to take their conversation into their mind. After a second, he finally looked back at me, his golden eyes weighing me back down to earth as my only lifeline right now. "_You kept saying 'I'm sorry' again and again_," the smooth voice finally said.

Cringing I looked away, shivering in a nonexistent breeze.

"H-H-How-How'd you g- get in here?" I whispered, desperate to fill the air with something. Something besides the silence that cut into me. Something to hide me from the truth.

Zetsu shifted, seemingly uncomfortable, watching me cry in front of him, but if he had a problem, he didn't say anything. Instead, the Venus flytrap on his shoulders curled open more, for once showing the bare skin of his shoulders as he peered condescendingly at me. "_The door.__** How else would I get in here, baka?**_"

Lying back down, I stared off at the sidewall, replacing my kunai back under my pillow but still held onto it, unwilling to let go. "R-Ri-Right," I murmured.

The room was silent, filling me with my thoughts as the time ticked slowly by. I couldn't tell if the tears had stopped or if I had passed back out, but the next thing I knew I heard footsteps coming closer and those two hypnotic golden eyes appeared once again in front of me, capturing my breaking heart in a way I couldn't decide. He may have been a murderer and scum, but Zetsu was here. I looked up at him blankly, dead inside until I saw his black hand reaching out towards me.

Jerking back, I panicked, sucking in a deep breath as his searing grip grabbed my upper arm. His skin was like fire against my own, proving of how cold and clammy I seemed to be all of the sudden. I froze when instead of flinging me across the room like I had expected, I found myself being pulled gently up in bed until I was sitting, his white hand forcing my face up to look him in the eyes. They were hard, guarded, but I didn't have the effort to try to read anything in them anyways.

As soon as it had begun, his grip was gone, leaving me feeling surprisingly cold and bare without his touch. Zetsu had stepped back, staring back towards the door. "_It's time to train. Come on Amaya_," he announced.

I shivered as he said my name. It sounded so different coming out of his mouth. Different than I expected. Chills shot up my spine making my brain buzz in a weird way, and I quickly wiped off the tears that were still streaming down my face.

My head perked up, thankfully for a temporary distraction. "Training?" I asked clueless. "Wh-What training?"

"_Leader-sama wants you to start training_," he answered blandly, walking over towards the door. He paused a moment staring at me. The unreadable look was back in his eyes and I stared at him waiting for him to do something. Nevertheless, it didn't seem like he knew exactly what to do for some reason, whether to leave or try and say something.

I wasn't quite sure how to answer so I nodded to acknowledge I understood. For the moment, I would probably do anything he told me to do. I couldn't' think. I didn't know how. Mentioning Pein brought back a strange sense of reality. My hands didn't tremble nearly as much as I pulled my knees to my chest. They didn't fumble clumsily over the covers as I forced myself to relax.

Every time I closed my eyes, I could still see Hiroshi's little face. His beautiful little face…

I took away his future.

Zetsu moved towards the door upon seeing I wasn't going to protest. I shivered at the thought of being alone. Right now, I didn't see a cold-blooded murderer when I looked up into his strange eyes; I saw a man.

"Z-Zetsu-san," I murmured, unaware of the respect I gave him. He froze, his hand on the door. "Please d-don't tell anyone-ne."

It was quiet. Then, after a moment, he left.

I sat in bed for a long time, my mind unusually blank. It took me longer than it usually did to pull myself out of bed to get ready for training, but somehow I must have even though I could remember any of it when I was finished.

My own dream made me wonder if Katsu was having nightmares too, nightmares I wouldn't be able to be there to make vanish. I wouldn't be there to hold him.

Before I realized it, there was one sharp knock on the door. Jerking up, I hurried to open it, surprised to see Konan standing on the other side instead of Zetsu. I guess I had just assumed he would be the one taking me to training since he had woken me up, but I must have been wrong.

Konan assessed me quickly, noticing how glassy and red my eyes were. "I see you're already awake." Her voice was soft, musical almost, but I couldn't help but be disturbed by what she said.

Didn't she know Zetsu had already been here to wake me?

Frowning, I chose not to say anything as she suddenly turned; leading me to a large open room I assumed was to be one of their training areas and was left alone. Konan didn't say a word or give me any inclination of what I should be doing before turning once again and shutting the door behind her.

With nothing better to do, I fiddled with the hem of my shirt, taking the time to glance around at my surroundings. From my memory, I placed this as the second training area, further back into the rock than the other three. That would place it one hallway up from my cell—one more away from Katsu who was in the other direction.

It was open enough. The ceilings stretched higher above any other room I had been in yet with several large stalactites hanging looming over my head. It took nearly thirty candles to light the room, still leaving most of it in darkness. Anything I could possibly need was here: kunai, shuriken, wooden posts, targets, and many other things. The only problem was I had nothing to train.

With a heavy sigh, I laid down, staring up at the ceiling. My eyes met only the dark cervices hidden in the shadows. It whispered something evil. _This place is too dark_, I grumbled closing my eyes. Everywhere I had been in this place was dark. It only made me think of the tunnel that ran under my old house and all of the horrible things it hid. I should do something about it…

There didn't seem to be anything better to do. While I was doing this then I could think of something else I did need to work on if I was going to get out of here and ever see Katsu again. I looked up at the ceiling again for a moment decided where it would be best placed to give the most light. Using my chakra, I called on the rock under my feet. Easily the ground rose listing me way up to the ceiling like a pedestal.

Every ninja specialized in one element of chakra out of the five: water, fire, earth, lightning, and wind. All five of the elements were always present inside the body, but each person would have a unique balance. For me, I had both lightning and earth, which gave me the metal element. Later on my father had taught me how to draw on water, the third most present element in my body, but it was harder to control considering there was less water type chakra in my body than in others. It was something simple every ninja learned. My father had made sure he taught me how to master the elements. He said it was vital to becoming a great ninja.

One of the only reasons I was able to learn how to control my chakra types so quickly was due to my abilities to sense chakras. I could feel the energy inside everything, even nature.

I forgot how easy it was only to use only one chakra at a time. It felt like I was raising my arm or taking a breath. It was second nature. When I stopped at the ceiling, I placed my hand on the wall, using my chakra to find the weakest point. I forced back the rock in a large circle.

Switching to water and lightning I pulled the different chakras into each palm, one crackling excitedly, zapping pleasantly through my body, the other washing over me and soothing my body. The energy buzzed inside my body as I held it in, waiting for the exact moment I could combine the two. I placed my palms together letting the chakra meet. As I slowly pulled my hands apart, I moved them over the opening. Then before I knew it they twisted, forcing together mixing and forming a giant crystal.

Light burst against the crystal shooting down throughout the room. Instantly everything lit up, illuminating everything. It was so bright I had to look away.

Satisfied, I came down replacing the earth the way it had been before and basking in the light. At least now, I knew it was daytime outside. I didn't even let myself think about moving away the rock and escaping, as I knew I could. It would be too easy to get away right now with no one watching and my mind spinning too fast for me to think. I knew I would have to leave Katsu if I did that.

I would never leave him.


	10. Revealing Secrets

**AN: **I'm so sorry I couldn't get this up before Easter. I tried but I can't tell you how terrible Easter was this year. My sister ended up in the ER with A UTI and kidney problems and they still have no idea what's actually wrong with her. Not only that but my long time boyfriends sister just found out that her intended fiance was in love also with her younger sister and his family is completley devestated and doesn't know what to think or do at the moment. So Easter was hectic. It still is, but I needed to keep myself busy so I don't think to much so I put all my effort into busting out a couple new chapters for you guys! Yay!

Haha, is it bad that I can't remember completely what happens in this chapter since I'm posting another one right after this? Probably. Lol, eh whatever. If I give anything away you'll have found out about it soon anyways, though I'll still try to be vauge just in case. I can't stand when people give away things for me.

Zestu and Amaya's relationship is going to start changing a lot more now that I've set them up a bit more and developed them. You'll have to just wait and see _how_ they're going to change ;)

Thank you so much for the reviews and favorites I've gotten over the past week! I can't tell you how happy that made me to see those messages in my email. It really made me smile and with the past couple of days, I can't tell you how much a smile helped.

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><p><strong>Chapter 10<strong>

**Revealing Secrets**

My life followed a daily schedule here. Every day I would wake up before dawn, which I judged by a similar crystal I placed in my room to study the ancient scrolls of my clan, and then I would be led by Konan to the training room where I would attempt to control the strange powers I had. After training, Konan would come again and lead me to a small room where I would eat in silence and then be taken back to the training room to spar with Tobi while Zetsu would watch. It was the only time I saw the strange plant man now. It was odd after seeing him constantly for the few days it took to travel here, and I couldn't shake the feeling he never once looked away from me. It gave me the oddest feeling, one I couldn't' place. Nevertheless, I never saw him again in my room, at least, not that I was aware of at least.

Then when Tobi had officially annihilated me, which the odd person did every single time we ever had to fight, I would be given a short break to eat and then put up targets and practice my aim with everything from a shuriken to a dagger. Surprisingly the goofy man was quite nimble. It was hard to hit him. It took me nearly a week before I could even hit him. Every sparring match he would win. Then again, I had never been too good at hand-to-hand combat or taijutsu. For the first couple of days I could only manage to spar for an hour or two. By then I would covered in scrapes and bruises from head to toe. Neither Tobi, nor Zetsu would ever give me any advice, any criticism or tips to help improve myself. Instead, they expected me to be hard enough on myself to discover my own weaknesses and learn to exploit them to my advantage. It didn't take me long to figure out, but when I did I began taking in as much information as I possibly could. By the fourth day I even noticed I could slowly start to last longer with him. Not by much, but it was a start.

Target practice was much more suited for me. My father taught me to throw weapons perfectly as a child. After seeing my horrid taijutsu Zetsu seemed surprised when I hit every target dead on, even when I had to execute the most bizarre and counterproductive movements they threw at me to try and shake my aim. It became a favorite pastime of mine to try to shock Zetsu, seeing how I could never really tell when Tobi was actually impressed or just faking it. Target practice quickly became my favorite part of the day.

Then, when the day was over, I would be sent back to my room, escorted by Zetsu himself. There I would secretly study Sarnik, planning my escape with Katsu until I passed out only to start the process over again.

No matter what I seemed to do now Zetsu would always be there, watching me, even when I knew there was no way he could possibly be there. At times, I could swear I felt him in my room or days when the earthy smell of his chakra seemed to be everywhere I would go. His bright golden eyes penetrated through the darkness, eating into my soul. Now that I was back to my senses, I wanted to kick myself for being so open and vulnerable around him. Each time I saw him now I felt like he could see past the show I put on to make myself seem like I cared less and that I didn't feel anything. He knew though. He knew.

Never once did I see Katsu the entire time. It had been almost two weeks. Whenever I was in the hallways, he never seemed to be around and slowly my paranoia began to eat away at me. In my mind, I kept picturing him dead in his room. The only thing that kept me sane was the fact each night, his name always appeared over his room. There hadn't been a single chance to attempt to sneak out to see him though, no matter how hard I tried. Each night my door was always locked and chakra sealed shut, and during the days Konan, Tobi, or Zetsu always seemed to be by my side. Pein appeared to have vanished. Three was no one that seemed to leave to give him food or to make sure he was still alive from what I could tell. They only seemed to care about my training and me. I couldn't focus not seeing him for so long. I had gotten so used to seeing him every day when I was back at the house, back home where I didn't have to hide and we could be open. Now, it was as if he didn't exist.

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><p>Training lasted longer than normal tonight; every muscle in my body seemed to be burning and trembling. I let out a frustrated groan as I shut my door and flopped on my bed. It was no wonder I couldn't beat Zetsu when we had fought. If he had been going through this intense training for years then there was no way I could even be considered on the same level with him.<p>

_I wonder how much more of this I'm going to have to take before I could just go and take care of this Hayato guy._

Once I was sure I couldn't hear Zetsu's retreating footsteps anymore, I eagerly peeled myself off the bed and reached eagerly for my necklace. Eagerly I opened it, quickly focusing my chakra and picturing Katsu's face. I had never tried to see anyone before. "_Eih mitsu-torae."_ When I released the chakra, I was halfway expecting to get an image of his room with his name printed nearly underneath to taunt me. I gasped as the ink flooded the page and I saw a black and white version of his face appear on the paper. Tears welled in my eyes.

His eyes were hollow, his cheeks sunk in slightly, but there was no doubt at all he was at least getting some sort of nutrition. The angles of his face were sharper without the slight baby fat curving his cheeks the way I loved. He turned, looking towards me. In his eyes, I could see he knew someone was there, somehow and I couldn't help but smile softly. The ink moved with him, capturing his emotions flawlessly. I reached out, stroking the paper. I couldn't help but wish he could see me, even if I knew it would be impossible.

"I'm coming Katsu," I whispered feeling the anger inside me grow at his obviously neglected face. "Don't worry. I'll find a way."

Off to the side of his face a small list slowly rose to the surface of the paper. Curiously I turned, looking at it closer to find that it was facts about him. It listed when he was born along with both of his parent's deaths. Everything from his chakra type to his favorite food slowly listed out on the side. I stared at it curiously, watching as the list continued to grow as I read it, the one I read disappearing to make room for another fact.

The door burst open revealing Zetsu, a menacing glare on his face. "_**I told you she up to something**__,_" his black side sneered, staring hard at the scroll in my hands.

For a second he looked up, the white half of his face smothered in a cruel smirk with an indescribable look in his eye. "_How was I supposed to know she what she was doing, eh?"_ the white half defended. "_Looks like we'll have to tell Leader-sama she's been spying on people_."

_No!_ I gasped, jerking up in alarm. He couldn't tell Pein! Pein would take Sarnik away. Then I'd have failed my father and lost my only way to see Katsu all at once.

Immediately I covered the scroll, barely remembering not to release the jutsu in front of him. Heaven forbid he would actually _see _the ink sinking back into the scroll. Zetsu snarled in my direction, his anger and disgust overriding his face. Just as he turned to slam the door shut, I pulled back my chakra letting the ink fall back into the page again, leaving it blank. He quickly strode across the room in two long steps, ripping Sarnik from my hands and I couldn't help but cringe away, expecting a slap or punch.

Instead, there was only silence for a second, so thick I could barely breathe. Growling he looked back at me, showing me the blank scroll.

"_What's this_?" he snapped.

"Wait—!" I cried, reaching towards him, but he pulled away.

He stared at me for a moment, again debating with himself in his head. I had learned that look well throughout my training sessions. That was him arguing with his other personality to come to an agreeable conclusion between his more observant black side and more emotional white half. All of the sudden, with a start, he turned away, heading back towards the door, Sarnik tightly in his hand and not even a glance back in my direction.

Panicking, I quickly raised my hand. Bubbling energy shot through me, coming faster than it had before and I swung desperately, wind shooting by me. The door shut with a slam. He turned back, his molten golden eyes cutting deep into me. I cringed, but I didn't look away. I couldn't. Not when he was going to ruin everything by telling Pein.

"Just wait. Please," I begged, slowly lowering my arm. Forcing back the plentiful chakra, I tried to force back the sudden knowledge I could be strong enough to kill him now. Only if I needed to though. Not now.

"_What_?" he growled obviously displeased.

I became all too aware of the feeling of his chakra gathering at his feet. Gasping I sprung off my bed, leaping towards him before I could think about what I was doing. I crashed into him with a thump, both of us falling back against the door, my hands clinging around his shoulder and tangling into his cloak. I froze as our eyes locked with our faces inches apart, but my panic overrode any common sense of fear. His surprise and shock quickly melted back into burning anger and I quickly started sputtering out intelligent things to make him stop.

"W-W-Whoa! Wait! Wait! Ju-Just a second," I squeaked as his arms came up to rip me off him so he could melt down into the floor, one hand reaching up for my throat. My grip tightened and I did the only thing I could think of; I bit his hand.

He jerked back, finally loosening my grip enough for me to stumble onto the floor as he finally straightened back up. Before I could register the words coming out of my mouth, I shouted, "I'll tell you!"

That was enough to catch his attention. I cringed at my own stupidity, but knew I couldn't take the words back now. Sucking up my pride, I hurried to my feet, ready to grab him again if he attempted to run away. His golden eyes were watching me carefully. "I-I'll tell you about the scroll, just please wait. Just, just take me to him." Zetsu frowned, gathering his chakra and in desperation I clung to his cloak again, eyes wide. "Just wait! I'll tell you everything! Anything! I promise I won't try anything! I just want to see him. Just wait for one second!"

Zetsu stopped, staring down in my eyes .For the first time I realized how_ tall_ he really was. I just barely came above his chin and it gave me a strangely satisfying bubble in my chest, but I quickly shoved away those types of thoughts for now. From the look on his face, I could tell he was thinking about my offer, contemplating if it was worth letting me see Katsu. I'd gotten more accustom to his facial expressions over the weeks and I was using everything in my memory to pull something out of his face now. It didn't even bother me I was nearly pressing myself up against his hard, toned body, begging the man I was supposed to hate.

"Just this once." I bit my lip. This could be my only chance to see him though before something happened. I had to. "Please. I need to see him. I'll tell you anything you want, just please let me see him."

My offer hung loosely in the air. It felt so long waiting for his answer. If he said yes, I would have more time to think, more time to try to find a way out of telling him all of my Clan's secrets. I'd have to find a way to get that scroll back from him somehow. At best, I would see Katsu and get the scroll back, but I needed more time.

"_Fine_," he agreed reluctantly. I let out a sigh, my knees nearly giving out under me and my grip on his cloak became more demanding as I sunk a little into him. "_**But you will tell me what I want to know**_."

I was going to be able to see him. After all this time. Finally. I couldn't help but grin uncontrollably at him, too overjoyed to think about anything else as the reality of it dawned on me. Smiling, I said, "Okay, whatever you want to know. I promise."

With a satisfied smirk, he stared down at me, basking in his victory, and reluctantly I released him, stepping back enough for him to get out of the door. All of the sudden I felt the flushing embarrassment for nearly throwing myself at him. By the smug look in his eyes, I knew he didn't miss my burning blush as I stared off to the side.

"_**This way**__,_" he stated, not waiting for me to follow him. Gasping, I darted out of the room after him. My stomach was twisting too much for me to concentrate as I tried pictured Katsu's face again, despite not being able to help but think about my embarrassing moment.

It didn't take as long as I thought to make it to Katsu's cell. Part of it may have been to watching only the way Zetsu's cloak kicked up as he walked and the new gratefulness I felt towards him, or maybe because my body was buzzing too nervously that it seemed only like seconds had passed since we left my room. Either way when Zetsu stopped, motioning towards a solid oak door with a metal slot near the ground they could shove food through I didn't particularly care. All I cared about was the boy behind that door.

Suddenly hesitant, I paused by the door, glancing back at Zetsu before testing the door. To my surprise, the door opened without any effort, no lock or chakra seals or anything. I swallowed anxiously before walking in.

"What do you want now?" Katsu croaked from a back corner of the room. It sounded as if he hadn't had water for a couple of days, his voice like sandpaper grating on my ears. His face was turned away from me as he leaned against the base of his bed. "Leave me alone."

I stole a glance back at Zetsu tears starting to form in my eyes, wondering what exactly they had done to him, but he stared blankly back at me. Turning back towards Katsu, I smiled weakly.

He turned slightly. "I said go away," he repeated louder.

"To mighty to see a friend?" I joked with a weak laugh.

Jolting upright, he spun his eyes wide. A large grin spread across his face and he slammed into me before I could react, his arms crushing me in a bone-crushing hug. Holding him closer I let my feelings take over. Waves of sadness and pure joy radiated through me. The entire room faded back into nothing around the two of us.

"Oh God it's really y-you!" he cried ecstatically. "You got away."

Pulling back slightly I grabbed his hand, kissing his palm before placing it against my cheek. He smiled radiantly despite the hunger lines streaking his face. I stroked his hand lovingly, enjoying the feel of his rough hands against my face.

"No," I murmured softly. His face twisted in confusion but I gave him a reassuring smile. "I didn't get away. I convinced Zetsu to take me here, but it's ok. Everything will be ok. I promise. I'll find a way to get you out of here."

"But—Zetsu! That _freak_!" he screeched, then remembering to keep his voice lowered glanced around us. "Why the _hell_ are you trusting him? He's one of them!"

Laughing softly, I pulled Katsu into my bosom before he lost his temper. Instantly he relaxed, instead wrapping his arms around my waist, nestling his face into my shirt and taking a deep breathe. I glanced back to where Zetsu was staring at the both of us, his eyes narrowed. Quickly seeing my gaze, he looked away, checking the hallways to see if anyone was coming with a scowl on his face.

"We can trust him this time," I assured. When Katsu glanced up in question, I smiled, brushing the hair out of his eyes. "I gave him an offer he couldn't refuse."

"What!" he gasped stepping back instantly. "Amaya-chan! What do you mean 'an offer he couldn't refuse'?"

I blushed faintly, catching the hidden innuendo of my words, but refused to acknowledge it. It gave me the creeps even thinking of giving Zetsu _that_ kind of offer. "In exchange for seeing you I'll tell him anything he wants to know," I answered simply. Seeing his eyes flash dark green in anger, I quickly decided to elaborate. "He came in and saw me using Sarnik, the scroll I was telling you about earlier and I told him that if he took me to you I would tell him whatever he wanted to know." Before he could protest, I placed my finger on his lips silencing him. "Don't worry about it. Leave it to me. I can get out of this."

Frowning he held out his arms for another hug. The joy of seeing Katsu was beginning to wear off slightly into worry. I was starting to notice how abused he appeared to be. Without even asking I took him into my arms, inserting my chakra into him and healing him, feeling around for the extent of his injuries and soothing all of the tension away from him. We both glowed blue. With his head pressed into my chest, he didn't seem to notice his eyes beginning to droop. The poor boy probably hadn't slept in days.

Pulling back again, I moved over to sit on the bed, dragging Katsu with me in my arms. It was comforting to know that they had at least given him something soft to sleep on, even if it didn't look like he had been able to sleep much anyways. Katsu followed blankly, sitting next to me.

I hesitantly stopped easing the tension from his body, debating on whether or not I should ask. Finally, I decided.

"What have they done to you?"

He looked down, shame written all over his face. "Nothing."

"Katsu," I warned, sitting up straighter. He turned his head away. My heart skipped a beat. My mind was starting to flash over all of the things they could have done to make him feel this way, showing me all of the horrors they could possibly have inflicted upon him. My body gave an involuntary shutter. In a softer voice I murmured, "Please tell me."

"They asked me everything I knew," he answered after a pause. "I didn't say anything at first and then they stopped giving me food so I eventually told them. I couldn't hold out any longer."

Sighing, I thought about what he said as I wrapped my arms around his shoulders, pulling him in close to me. It was hard not to be angry with Zetsu, knowing he had been a part of it. All of them were guilty.

"What did they ask?"

He looked back up at me, stealing a look towards the door where Zetsu still stood, keeping an eye out for anyone coming down the hallways No doubt Zetsu was listening to everything we said, but it was still worth it. "Mostly questions about you: how long I had known you; if I had ever seen you fight and things like that. Most of them I didn't know, but they didn't seem to believe me."

"What did you tell them?" I asked, closing my eyes.

He was quiet for a moment. The bed shifted slightly as I squirmed. "I told them that you were part of the Hirokosai Clan," he answered quietly. Quickly he added, "I didn't mean to. It just sort of came out. I was so confused and I-I don't know. It just sort of … slipped."

_Damn it. _

"Katsu," I hushed, rubbing his back soothingly. "Don't worry about it. I would have had to tell them anyways. Most people don't even remember the Hirokosai Clan. And if they were going to starve you I'm glad you told them." He looked up, rubbing a single tear from his eyes. I knew how he felt now. He felt weak. Useless. I smiled, wanting nothing more than to see him okay again, quickly easing more of my chakra in him, hoping to relieve him of some of the pain. "I don't want anything to hurt you. I'm glad you told them."

"But I—"

"I don't care," I teased, laughing slightly. "You did the right thing."

He looked down determined, the effects of my chakra slowly starting to take effect again as he yawned. I could feel his determination radiating off him as he stared hard at the floor despite his exhaustion. Just as he was about to say something Zetsu stepped in the doorway. Katsu glared sleepily up at him; brushing against my fears, Zetsu had physically abused him. The temperature in the room dropped dramatically.

"_We need to leave. Someone will notice if you stay any longer_," he stated.

His yellow eyes moved from Katsu, watching him leave heavier and heavier on my shoulder as I started to lull him asleep and slowly over to me as if expecting me to bend to the simple statement. I realized I had no choice but to. I had given him a colossal upper hand. I'd have to do anything he wanted me to now.

"I'll see you again, okay?" I grinned at Katsu as I gently laid him back on the bed and stood up.

Katsu glanced silently up at me trying to fight sleep, but I didn't let him as I gave one more little nudge to my push him over the edge. He nodded blankly making me frown. I realized a bit too late he was still feeling guilty for bending under them.

"Hey." He looked up and I pulled him into another hug, kissing his forehead. I couldn't care less if Zetsu was here. I couldn't care if the world saw. I smiled. "I love you."

Blushing slightly, a grin stole onto his lips as is eyes began to drift down. "Love you too…"

"Take care of yourself. I'll be back soon." I gave him another kiss on the forehead before forcing myself to pull away. By the time I stood up, he was already fast asleep. "I promise," I murmured, brushing his hair back one last time.

Staring down at him for a moment, I smiled, drinking in his face before letting out a weary sigh. Seeing him like this was harder than I thought it would be.

Slowly, I turned back towards Zetsu, nodding t him to lead the way before I lost my nerve to leave at all. Despite him being asleep I still turned back to give Katsu one last smile.

Zetsu closed the door, making me jump slightly. I frowned, wanting bad to glare at him but I knew I was indebted to him. Every time I seemed to think I had him figured out, he'd do something bogus like this to throw me. So rather than yell as I wanted to I forced a blank look, enjoying the new look in Zetsu's eyes. He looked frustrated. It made me strangely happy.

"_Come on_," he snapped, turning away from me. I couldn't hide the grin on my face. Something definitely had bothered him. "_**And wipe that annoying grin off your face before I rip it off myself**_," his black half muttered darkly.

My smile only grew knowing I had unknowingly found something that dug under his skin. Then like lightning, it dawned on me. Zetsu couldn't stand seeing me so close to Katsu. It really got to him. I bit my lip, trying hard not to tease him about it. What type of man was bothered by showing affection to a child? The thought nearly made me laugh. For now though, I would have to be nice. Later, when he didn't have anything hanging over my head, I would make sure Zetsu knew how idiotic he was being. When I beat him, I would make sure I'd make him furious, using his own frustration of affection against him.

My eyes shot open as two new chakras exploded over everything. It mixed, leaking and running over everything, coating everything in an eerie feeling, something murderous and brutal. Burning ash. Moss and salt. Strong, potent, as if they weren't even trying to hide it from anyone. The very presence of their chakra sent me crashing back to when I first felt Zetsu's chakra, how suffocating and unbearable it was, but this was different. Freezing in place, I clutched at my throat, trying to block my senses from picking it up.

Zetsu stopped, ready to snap at me again when his visibly tensed. "Z-Zetsu?" I asked, unsure what to do.

His head snapped in my direction with a blank face. I cringed. We both glanced down the hallway the sounds of footsteps echoed down the hallway. I didn't have time to react as he suddenly grabbed me by the arm and roughly pulling me into his strong toned chest, my eyes once again locked with the two burning golden orbs only inches from my own. Suddenly I couldn't breathe, the breath forced clean out of me, that strange warm sensation swirling back in my stomach.

Before I could even open my mouth to ask what they hell he was doing, I found us sinking backward. Panicking I realized this is what he had done before when he went to get my cloak. When I struggled, pulling from his grasp he only held me closer until there wasn't a hairs-breath between our bodies, silently sinking into the wall.

The very bases of my molecules started to pull apart, straining and stretching around the basic structures that made up the rock. Someone was plucking me apart piece by piece, merging the very fabrics of my DNA with the wall until there wasn't a trace of me left at all. I opened my mouth to scream, but no noise came out. Everything started to spin as I was sucked into the wall, becoming part of it. I could feel myself merge partly with Zetsu, overpowered by his cruel chakra.

The last thing I could see were two men turning down the hallway.

Then everything was still.

I hit the ground with a hard thump gasping for breath. The room started to spin around me and my stomach flipped awkwardly. Gagging, I quickly rolled over onto my stomach, hoping the movement would calm it down, but if anything, things started to spin faster, the floor rolling and twisting under my hands. Again, my stomach dry heaved, threatening to throw out all its contents.

"_**Damn it**__!"_ Zetsu cursed, giving me something to focus. Anything to make the dizziness go away. "_**What the hell are they doing back so early?**_ _They must have received Pein's message and aborted their mission. That was too close._ _**Then maybe you shouldn't have agreed in the first place**__!"_

Their bickering sent shivers racing all over my skin, covering me in tiny goosebumps. Either way it helped ease my stomach. A distraction. "W-Who's here?"

"_**Itachi Uchiha and Kisame Hoshigaki**_."

_The man who stole my chakra…_ I recalled with a gasp of horror.

Sitting up I tuned out what Zetsu was saying, unable to focus. His angry voices bickering back and forth faded into the background along with the strange sound of his Venus flytrap snapping open and shut as he fought to do something. My world was hazing in and out of focus as I slowly regained my bearings. As I looked around, I noticed we were back in my room. Everything was how we left it earlier. Even Sarnik was still lying on the bed. _But how?_ I thought weakly. It seemed like only seconds, being sucked into the wall and then falling out here. Confused, I turned back to Zetsu to see that he had finally managed to agree upon something with himself.

My hands still trembled as I shoved myself to my feet. The second I stood up my legs started to shake. Crying out I collapsed, falling back onto the bed. That seemed to be all Zetsu needed to make up him mind. The Venus flytrap peeled open, his eyes flashing.

"_**Tell me about the scroll**_," he demanded.

Frowning, I rubbed my forehead trying to focus. Scroll. Scroll. My thoughts felt so distant, so far away as I tried to call on them. It felt like someone had bashed against my head against the wall. To buy time to recover I asked, "W-What was th-that?"

He shifted. "_Tell me about the scroll_," his other half repeated, softer, almost concerned.

Not able to take the throbbing anymore I focused my chakra to my head, mending whatever had happened to me. It felt as if all of my particles had been rearranged and thrown back together in a heap. Healing myself at least made the trembling go away. Eventually, I could focus well enough. I sat up.

"First tell me whatever that was."

"_**You're not in any position to make requests, onna**__."_

"If you don't tell me then I'll just look it up myself," I warned. "And I don't think you would want me to do that because I would find out a lot more about you than just that little fact."

I held his icy glare as he stared me down, judging to see if I was telling the truth or not. I could read it in his eyes. I may not be good at it, but I was starting to catch onto his habits. Soon I'd find a flaw. The idea brought a small smirk to my face. It didn't matter if I hid it or not now. We were both going to have to share our little secrets now.

The Venus flytrap on his shoulders shifted as he walked over to the desk chair and sat down, his tall form looking odd besides something so normal and plain. "_It's a special technique I'm able to use that allows me to merge with my surroundings and travel fast_."

"Ah," I murmured, letting the remaining tension in my shoulders go. At least when he escaped he took me with him. As much as I wanted to, I couldn't criticize him for that.

"_**Now, tell me about the scroll**_."

I shrugged my shoulders, lying down on the bed to stare at the ceiling. I had a feeling this conversation was going to take a while. "What do you want to know about it?"

"_**What is it?**_"

"It's called Sarnik. I've been entrusted to protect it for the sake of my clan."

"_**What does it allow you to do?**_"

I fidgeted, not wanting to answer the question. It was too late not to say anything now, but revealing so much felt wrong. All of my life my father had brought me up telling me to protect Hirokosai's three sacred scrolls with my life and here I was just telling everything about one of them to a murderer. There was no way that I could tell Zetsu all of this knowing that he would only go and tell Pein everything I said. There had to be a way out of this.

"_**Answer**_," his dark half demanded impatiently. I vaguely noticed only his black half seemed to be speaking now. I looked curiously at him to find his white half frowning, eyebrow wrinkled down in either frustration or thought. It was unnerving when his black half was staring so hard at me, almost angrily.

I answered slowly, careful to keep my words ambiguous. "It lets me see whatever I want about whatever I want."

"_**Why wasn't the image still there when I grabbed the scroll**_?"

"I had released the jutsu by then. And besides, it won't work for anyone outside of the Hirokosai bloodline."

"_**How does it work?**_"

"I don't really know."

He stood abruptly, grabbing Sarnik from off of the bed next to me and unrolled it out across the desk. Promptly standing back, he turned his head towards me and with a simple nod beckoned me to stand and come over to him. Reluctantly I did, too aware of how close it seemed to be standing next to him now. "_**Now**_"—his breath washed over my neck sending nerve-tingling chills down my spine, instantly causing my skin to break out in goosebumps. He stepped even closer—"_show me how it works_," the white half murmured in my ear. Instantly, my knees quivered and my head fogged. I took a deep breath, trying to shake off the feeling his voice gave me.

Shifting away from him slightly, I stared down at my hands. Curse myself and my inability to break my promises. I should have never agreed to tell him anything he wanted to know. "What do you want to see?" I asked my voice strangely horse.

"_**Show me all of the current jinjurican along with their locations**_."

Confused, I hesitated, not sure what I should try to picture in my head. "The what?"

"_**Jinjurican**_," he repeated as if he was talking to an annoying five-year-old. His golden eyes cut into me as I dug for anything I knew about something called a jinjurican, and seeing my confusion explained angrily, "_**A jinjurican is a host of one of the tailed demons**_."

The tailed demons were familiar to me. There wasn't a single person who didn't know the tales about the nine different tailed beasts terrorizing all of the nations. Each beast had a different number of tails. The more tails a demon had the more of a threat it posed, the tails representing the amount of control and rational thinking the demon had In order to stop the onslaught the demons were causing, and using the opportunity to gain more potential power for their nations, the demons must have been sealed inside of people. It all made sense once I put it together, but I had never needed a reason ever to think about any of it before.

Frowning, I took a deep breath trying to picture anything related to the beasts. Whenever I had used Sarnik I always had a picture in my head, but now the only thing I had to think about was what Zetsu had told me. I made sure to block out everything else.

Releasing my chakra, I waited for a moment. Zetsu's golden eyes watched too intently, memorizing every detail. I could feel my chakra seep into the scroll, but nothing happened. Frowning I tried again.

Nothing appeared.

"_**Lying**_?" he scoffed, laughing sickly to himself. "_**You should have known better than that!**_"

I stepped away from him, still not taking my eyes off the scroll. _What's going on?_ Curiously, I tried again, but the same thing happened. Nothing.

"I don't understand," I murmured running my fingers through my hair. "It should be working."

A sharp pain shot through my face, tearing my head to the side. Gasping in pain, I grasped my cheek. Blood rushed up to the handprint. Wide-eyed, I turned quickly towards Zetsu to see his black hand falling back to his side. "_**Stupid girl**_," he growled.

"No!" I defended holding my cheek. "I swear I'm not lying! I'll try something else."

He was about to say something but I pushed him back and quickly pictured their Katsu's face again. When the image was clear in my mind, I released my chakra. This time the results were immediate. Ink instantly started bubbling up to the surface of the scroll creating the perfect replica of Katsu's face again, still fast asleep from when we left him earlier. It made me even angrier seeing the scroll work now. Why couldn't I see the jinjurican?

"I told you I wasn't lying!"

Zetsu stepped closer, again sending waves of chills and shivers racing down my spine as the heat from his chest seeped through the back of my shirt. Standing this close to him sent a dark cloud shooting through my body like lava, consuming everything it touched. I could feel the very essence of his black soul.

Abruptly he turned, turning his gaze away from me and walked towards the door. Hand on the knob, he paused, turning and giving me one last glance before he disappeared.

His voice echoed back into my room. "_Training starts early tomorrow_. _**Be ready.**_"


	11. Two Steps Forward

**AN: **So, lately I've really gotten back into the Hunger Games with the movie. Have any of you guys seen it yet or read the books? I thought it was pretty good, for movie standards after a book anyways. I was bummed it wasn't a little more violent like the book, but oh well. I guess targetting more age ranges means less awesome action. Darn it.

I absolutely loved typing up this chapter. It was so much fun. You get to find out a little more about what Amaya can do here. I can only say, poor Kisame. I love the guy, but oh man. This is painful

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><p><strong>Chapter 11<strong>

**Two Steps Forward, One Step Back**

Before I could wake up, loud rapping against my door woke me up. Shooting out of bed I quickly pulled one of the cloaks they had given me, pulled back my hair and opened the door.

At first, I expected Zetsu. He would still be angry—he had been ever since that night—and rude enough to wake me like that, and mostly likely wouldn't mind relieving Konan of her morning duty, but instead I came face-to-face with a blue man.

Blue. Blue. Blue…. I blinked, staring straight forward at the span of clearly _blue _skin in front of my face. _Blue…_

Faintly coming to my senses, I slowly stared straight up at the strange blue man, struck by how odd he looked. When I saw his face, I instinctively stepped back, putting distance between the two of us. Two tiny beady eyes stared down at me, eyes like a shark. Three gills lined the sides of each cheek, stretching down his cheekbones while his navy blue hair stood nearly straight up, supported by a slashed Hidden Mist headband. If that wasn't odd enough, everything about him was _huge. _I'd never seen a man so tall, so his massive size, the bandaged sword strapped to his back still managed to find a way to look nearly twice as big as I felt at that moment.

_Holly hell,_ I gasped.

I quickly hid my surprise under the blank mask I wore whenever I came out of my room.

The man chuckled, showing two rows of large sharp teeth, apparently not failing to catch my reaction to his unbelievable gigantic body. "So you're the girl that everyone's been talking about here," he smirked, his voice deep and hard, almost as if he was constantly chuckling or growling underneath the surface.

_Everyone's been talking about me?_ I asked myself clueless. In a way, I guess it wasn't too much of a surprise, but knowing that these men had been talking about me was unsettling. There wasn't anything special about me. I couldn't possibly imagine what could be so interesting to talk about myself, but then again, they might just be laughing at how epically I fail when trying to fight Tobi. That could be. Instead of answering, I took a keen interest in my shoes.

His lips twitched into a disturbing grin. "Come with me."

I didn't even think of disobeying, instantly falling into line behind his towering form. Silently I followed. His strides were longer, yet slower than the pace I had come accustom to with Zetsu and even Konan, but somehow he managed to seem just as graceful and balanced. Even his very presence made my body restless in anxiety. As we walked, my eyes never left his broad back. He was so different. His immense chakra coated everything we passed. Wet. Cool. Like the algae growing underneath a dock, tainted from the countless splashes of sea salt. I'd never seen so much chakra in one person before. Even his wrapped sword was bubbling with raw energy.

Our footsteps echoed across the rock as he led me past the training room I had been using. Confused, I about opened my mouth to question him but then stopped. I didn't know this man yet. He was probably cruel and hard like the others. No doubt, he would not like if someone like me, a _prisoner._ Somehow though he managed to notice I was going at ask—I made a mental note to be more guarded around him if he was somehow that observant—and he glanced back, that grin still plastered on his face. "You won't be training in there today. We have something special for you."

_We?_ That was a scary thought. I wasn't sure if I wanted whatever a bunch of S-Class criminals could offer me. Even the very thought sent chills shuttering to the very basis of my soul.

Still, it had been nearly a week since I had told Zetsu about Sarnik. Nothing had happened to me, except now my training seemed to be stretched longer, pushing me nearly to the point of collapsing. The bruises were worse. Any hesitation they held for killing me now was gone. Several times if that strange chakra hadn't bubbled to the surface inside me, I would have died. In Zetsu's head, I guess he figured if I was too tried to walk, I would be too tired to use Sarnik to view anything. Yet, Zetsu never came barging back into my room demanding to know more. He hadn't even bothered to take Sarnik away. No doubt, he had told Pein by now, but there was a small voice in the back of my head lulling me into calm. Maybe, just maybe, Zetsu didn't tell anyone at all. Maybe I was actually wrong about the strange plant man.

He was wrong though. I would never been too tired to check up on Katsu. Even if I was, the burst of fresh, clean energy releasing the Shuumi Scrolls gave me was more than enough to refresh me.

Now, knowing that I could see Katsu I stayed up no matter how tired I was to check on him. Whenever he seemed hurt or hungry I made sure that I made Tobi drop off food for him. If a new bruise appeared, I'd glare at everyone for the entire day, knowing that at least one of them would connect that somehow I would _know _when Katsu was being hurt again. Eventually, the bruises went away all together. Since then his face had started to fill in again.

This was the first time I had seen either Kisame or Itachi since they had arrived. Whether it was because of my sudden intense training or because they were never out, I wasn't sure. In my head, I wondered which one this man was: Itachi or Kisame.

A sudden fear crawled up my spine, realizing that if this was Kisame then he would be the same man that had drained me of my chakra before. The ability to drain someone of their life force and energy right from their body. I shivered. What a terrifying power.

"What's your name?" I asked almost hesitantly. No one ever answered my questions here, but it wouldn't hurt to try. _Please don't be Kisame. Please don't be Kisame. Please don't be Kisame…_

To my surprise, he answered. "Kisame Hoshigaki."

Dread raced through me in a cold breath. I stared in numbed shock, every muscle in my body freezing in a dawning terror. This was Kisame? The one who drained me off all of my chakra without leaving a single trace of anything behind?

Kisame stopped and turned with a manacle smirk on his face. I gulped, catching sight of his sharp teeth, teeth like a _shark._

"There a problem Onna?"

Gulping, I snapped myself out of my daze, realizing that I had stopped walking. Kisame had half turned, one hand moving up to the long hilt of his sword, accented by a small skull-like sharp on the end while his eyes seemed to dance in amusement.

Forcing my voice to work, I lied, "No. No problem Kisame-san. Just thinking."

Neither of us said another word, whether calling out my bluff or to break the silence as we continued down the hallway again, twisting and turning down random hallways.

We stopped in front of the third training room, the largest of all training spaces where Kisame opened the door for me, again shocking me. Despite the nagging feeling in the back of my head, I decided I liked this man; I gave him a small smile. It wasn't as if he really had a choice on what type of techniques he learned. In a way. As an S-Class ninja, being able to steal chakra was probably important. At least one out of the four men I had met here had manners. It wouldn't hurt to like him at least a little bit. Maybe I'd be able to gain an ally.

Smiling with my newfound idea I walked in, scanning the area to see it was nearly identical to the other training area, only the ceiling was bare and the walls seemed to stretch on forever. Rather than the training stumps and weapons, though it almost looked like we had somehow just walking into a bit of the outside world. Soft green grass that had managed to sprout up in the dirt grew chopping and uneven, but it gave some color. The same gloominess lit the room.

I was instantly aware of Zetsu's presence off to the side. His deep rolling chakra was rolling softly all over the room, so thin no normal ninja would be able to detect it but I could smell the earthy scent of dirt and bark as plain as day. When I turned in his direction, he was staring at me as his long body stretched out, leaning casually back against the wall. His wide golden eyes smirked all the way across the room. If I wasn't mistaken it almost looked like he was smiling. It was small, but even from here I could see the slight turn of his cheek.

"Why am I here?" I asked either man.

Kisame stepped up beside me cracking his shoulders with a sickening _pop_. "You will be fighting me today instead of Tobi. Strictly survival combat," he answered with a grin. "Leader wants to check on your progress."

"Progress?"

His eyebrows knitted together as an amused smile spread across his face. It seemed like he was always smiling. "Ah, so no one's told you yet? It won't matter then. All you need to focus on right now," he paused, his eyes flashing, "is me."

_Good luck with that,_ I thought ruefully. For the briefest of seconds, my eyes drifted over towards Zetsu. Kisame didn't fail to notice.

Shaking off his intrigued look he shot my way, I took a deep breath before going into the clearing and looking up. "I take it your ready then Onna?" Kisame called after me, but I chose to ignore him.

Directly in the center of the training area, I stopped, lifted my arm, and shoved back the rock over my head until a stream of light flooded down over me. It didn't even feel like I had to call on my chakra anymore or focus on what I was doing, as the earth just seemed to move with my will. Bright rays from the afternoon sun broke through from above, casting me in a circle of warm breath taking light. Smiling, I enjoyed familiar feel of the sun, basking in the heat I never have to feel anymore, fully aware both Zetsu and Kisame were watching me. Like I had before I brought my two hands together forming another crystal, this one bigger than before and placed it high up in the opening of the rock. The second the light thought the crystal, the entire room burst with the life and heat of the summer sun.

Zetsu was watching me when I turned around—the feel of his eyes was unmistakable, but I was careful to turn towards Kisame, fully aware the man was already curious about my relations with the plant-like man. Kisame was grinning. "I like the light," I explained simply. "I take it that you have been told about my fighting style and techniques?"

"What makes you think that? Think I need to know what you can do to beat a twerp like you?" he taunted.

I smirked, crouching down and thinking solely about Katsu. Of how they'd been treating him. Of how I'd brought him here. His suffering. Pain. Instantly make my temper flared with my self-loathing. I could feel the chakra bubbling to the surface. As I tensed both of my shoulders popped and the ground shattered under my feet. Rocks flew in the air, hovering and trembling from the power of my chakra. Cracks shot through the rock, webbing quickly up to the roof as rocks and shards dropped from the roof. Everything crackled to life with my chakra.

Surprised, Kisame stepped back, but his grin only grew.

My eyes watched as his sword seemed to come to life on his back, wiggling and squirming in response to my chakra.

I pushed my luck, whispering, "If not, you're dead…"

Holding on to my anger, I smirked, feeling the sudden burst of energy shooting through me. It felt like every nerve, every sensor in my body was flooded with pure energy, a thousand times stronger than the energy from releasing the Shuumi scrolls. I was getting it. It wasn't quit there, but I could almost control it. Zetsu's piercing gaze drove me over the edge with adrenaline, my body reacting with a pleasant hum and tingling power only he seemed to give me. Any confusion or surprise I could evoke in him made my heart race in satisfaction and my mind spin a million miles an hour. The smile on the white half of his face was definitely there now.

"You're pretty cocky," Kisame chided, pulling his sword off his back. I watched carefully seeing how easily he handled it compared to his height and the swords width and thickness. The swords length was nearly as much as his body. It was over a foot wide and varied in its thickness. He shouldn't' be able to wield it as fast as a katana, but from the way the sword moved I could tell it was anything but normal. Kisame smirked, taking his time to unbutton his Akatsuki cloak and set it off to the side. "You shouldn't underestimate your opponent. I might just have to shave you down."

In my head, I quickly calculated a plan.

The ground shot up under his feet. Jumping, he flipped forward to dodge the attack, but in a split second, I appeared in front of him sending a kick to his gut. He twisted his sword, barely blocking my shot. As I pulled back, spinning through with my motivation, he turned his sword to the blade in a move to slash my side. A giant spike shot from the ground separating us.

We both landed nearly two hundred yards apart. I frowned. He could wield his sword much better than I thought. If I was going to get close enough to land a blow on him then I would have to wait until he attacked, estimating by his sheer size that his arcs will have to big large and powerful. If I was fast enough I'd be able to slip in and block some of his chakra.

I gasped suddenly feeling my energy plummet. Kisame smirked.

"My sword, Samehada eats chakra," he announced holding out his blade for me to see. On cue the blade moved, shifting in his hands and letting out a foreign noise. I recoiled. _That was how he drained my chakra earlier. With that thing…_ "Even if I don't hit you Samehada will eat all of the chakra surrounding you that you keep throwing into the air like a lowly genin." After a short pause, he added on with a cruel smirk, "It seems Samehada likes the taste of your chakra. Too bad for you."

If I couldn't attack him directly without losing my chakra then I would have to attack around him. Mid-range to long distance attacks not focused solely on chakra. If his sword could devour my chakra, there was no reason it couldn't steal the chakra in an attack. I'd have to be a lot more cautious now. Any chakra-based attack I could send at him would only be absorbed by that sword of his, most likely being given to him for battle.

Snarling, I lashed out with a giant burst of chakra. No one could see it. No. Instead, I aimed for the ground, everywhere within a hundred yard radius of me. My chakra soaked greedily into the ground as I plan quickly formed in my mind. Everything my energy touched was like as a third eye, a seventh sense. I became overwhelmed in the strong slow-moving chakra that resided in the earth. The sounds of rushing water shifting deep down under the rock.

I narrowed my eyes gauging how fast he could attack. He moved fast enough. I had to be careful not to underestimate him now. Taking a half step back, I braced myself.

"I don't think you could if you tried," I sneered.

The grin fell off his face with a dark scowl. I bit my lip hoping I hadn't over done it. I had never been the one to talk in hard times, but I knew I had to provoke him to make some mistake. His reaction was better than I could have expected though as he slammed Samehada into the ground and took off towards me like a dart. "I'll show you what I can do!"

The second he launched himself towards me I clasped my hands together forming a seal. Water from underground was activated, shooting up from microscopic holes in the rock. Quickly the ground was submerged under the frigid water. Kisame only laughed, swinging his sword to cut a path through the icy clutches. I smirked, slamming my hand on the ground. Lightning shot up through the water, catching him.

A giant splash of water fell from where his body was. _A clone!_ Closing my eyes, I pinpointed his chakra, barely locating him in time to dodge the kick from behind me. Catching him off balance, I grabbed one of his legs, inserting my chakra and severing the Achilles tendon.

He let out a cry before quickly retreating. I panted for breath at the sudden drop of energy again, this time due to my medical attack. Thankfully, I missed his sword this time. _I'm getting better._ I watched carefully as he grimaced when he tried to apply any pressure to it. That would have to work for now, even if he would over compensate the pain soon enough.

"Not bad," he murmured taking a longer look at me. I ignored the backhanded compliment. He grinned before forcing his leg down, standing evenly on it despite the pain that had to be coursing through his body. Just seeing him made me cringe. "No wonder Pein is so interested you. It's not every day you come across a medic ninja who can fight. But you'll need more than that if you are going to beat me." He let out a coarse laugh.

_Obviously his sword is the key to his technique,_ I mused. _But how do I eliminate it? _In my head, I quickly shifted my attack strategy, running over all of the scenarios I could use to get him away from his sword. Most turn of events ended in the same way: him winning. That wasn't an option now.

Another large chakra source came in behind me making my skin break out in shivers. Charred skin and burning oak wood. The smells swirled assaulting my nose and turning my head hazy. Temporarily distracted I turned back to see Tobi bouncing into the room, waving his arms crazily. "Morning Amaya-chan! Kisame-san!" he beamed.

_That's strange._ I looked closer wondering why I was receiving such a strong wave of chakra coming off him. He had never been this strong before. Could he have been hiding it all along? My eyes narrowed as I stared intently at him. Just as he seemed to notice my gaze, the suffocating chakra seemed to be shrinking back, as if he suddenly decided to reel it back in, successfully smothering it. He moved so carefree and light though walking towards Zetsu I could picture the large grin on his face.

"Don't get distracted!" Kisame shouted.

Before I could react, his blade hit me, shaving off my skin, cutting straight through the side of my shirt and sending me flying back. Gasping, I chocked back on a sudden pain that shot through my body, paralyzing me. Everything was burning. My side was on fire. Breathing heavily I glanced down to see my entire left side was oozing blood, sliced nearly through all of my muscles, almost into my organs. The next second, my chakra dropped. My knees gave out as I fell down onto the hard ground, sending sparks and sizzling white lights shooting across my eyes.

Kisame smirked, lowering his stance as he chuckled at my pain. I couldn't think to raise my defenses again. The bubbling chakra was gone. Everything was on fire. I gasped, clutching my side in pain. "Not so cocky now, are you?" he taunted. "To think you were doing pretty good too…"

My eyes watched as he moved forward, sword at the ready again, but I couldn't register he was attacking. The bandages wrapping up his sword were red, dripping with blood. My blood. By the time I realized what he was doing it was far too late. He was nearly upon me. I let out a startled cry, feeling the pain cripple me and knowing I couldn't move.

Was this really it? Were they really going to let me die here?

A picture of Katsu flickered against my subconscious in the mere seconds I had left.

All alone.

Crying.

Dying.

Would I leave him here to fend off these bloodthirsty criminals? When I was the one who doomed him to this fate? Leave him to die? I felt sick to my stomach as my resolve crumbled. No, I couldn't leave him here. I couldn't let these murderers kill him. He was everything, all I had left.

I had to fight for him.

A searing pain exploded in front of my eyes, so tight, so hard it felt like it was ripping my head in half. I let out a blood-curled scream, my eyes burning. Clutching my head, I choked on blood dribbling down from my mouth, suddenly struck in an uncontrollable fit of coarse coughing. Pain. Mind numbing torture.

Everything seemed stopped. Kisame paused half stride, sword ready to crash down on me only feet away as the pulsing agony thumped in my head. The water stilled, no longer rippling out or curling up around his legs and the air felt as if it froze upon my skin. Everything paused.

Turning my head, I looked back at Zetsu and Tobi. Tobi was caught halfway in a startled wave, most likely shouting at me to move or gaping at Kisame's strength. Zetsu had leaned forward, his white hand pushing him off the wall as his black hand stretched out towards us, his face torn in an undistinguishable emotion. When I turned back to Kisame he too was frozen, Samehada in mid-swing towards my helpless form. Not even his eyes moved.

_What's going on?_ I asked myself looking around again. _Is this a genjutsu?_

Why use a genjutsu when he was going to kill me?

No matter what this was, I smiled at the sudden kick up in my energy. I could feel my body humming in pleasure again. Once I was able to overlook the pain, I could feel the cold chill as I breathed in, refreshing and soothing me. Ignoring the pain, I forced myself to my feet. Still, nothing moved. Out of habit, I checked all of the chakra frequencies around me, seeing if any of them were off or slightly up pace, but there were no signs that this was any illusion. I was completely normal. Bleeding. Crumbling. But normal.

The water seemed to rise a little higher around Kisame's leg, catching my eye. I looked closer to find out it had. To the tiniest details, things had shifted. My eyes widened in shock realizing that things were indeed moving, just at such a slow pace it appeared everything had stopped moving altogether. It was as if whatever was happening was an extreme version of when I normally called upon my energy. Instead of only slowing down slightly though, everything was barely even creeping forward. I stepped forward, flinching at the strange feeling. Raising my leg felt was harder than pulling it out of dried mud. As the water surrounding my feet rolled off, I froze seeing it levitate in midair, slowly spiraling down, down, down towards the ground.

My reflection stared back at me through the water and I froze seeing a strange face staring back at me. My eyes traced over the same curve of the cheeks and soft line of the jawbone, slimmer than before, more muscular, but it undoubtedly belonged to me. Stronger. More mature. Two hollows under my eyes cut deeper, giving my face a wild look. However, none of the subtle changes was what had caught my attention. It was my eyes. Two oval slits cut across my pupil. To any other they wouldn't nearly have been noticeable, but to me they were the eyes of another person. Powerful. Cold.

The change hit me nearly as hard as the conclusion afterwards. "I'm doing this?" I asked myself quietly.

I was controlling time.

Looking back at Kisame I glared, remember Katsu. This wasn't my battle anymore; I was fighting for his life, something more than I was. My eyes narrowed in on his sword. If there was any chance, it was now.

The ground shattered beneath me with a speed I had never seen before. Curling my arm, I knocked Samehada out of his hands, spinning and kicking him in the gut. The force was foreign. The power was unreal. It wasn't my attack, but I shivered in pleasure at the strength coursing through my veins. Kisame's body flew slowly through the air, contorting, bending oddly around my foot with a strange ease nobody should have. I appeared behind him hitting him in the small of the back with both palms, severing the nerve receptors at the base of his spine.

Attack after attack my body twisted, turned gracefully, flying across the room faster than I had ever felt. Each hit, each punch, severing and cutting more of Kisame, breaking and bending him to my will. Everything I had I used, stretching and bending this power, this incredible feeling for everything. All of the colors, the lines—everything was sharper, clearer than I had ever seen it. My body was soaring. As I landed perfectly on the ground, it was an eternity before Kisame fell, collapsing in a heap.

I almost wanted to push for more, attack, lose myself in the power. I wanted to stretch, push myself. Something stopped me. All of the sudden the dull throbbing in my head, the slight pain I had come accustomed to stopped.

Everything exploded in front of me. A pain beyond anything I had ever felt before rocked my body, strong enough to shatter me into a million pieces. I didn't have time to scream as new vision flickered and the whole shot forwards all around me. Then with one breath, the bliss shattered, crashing down all around me.

Kisame let out a flesh crawling cry of pain, his body crumbling down to the ground. Zetsu's extended hand stopped midair, whatever he had been planning lost in his head and Tobi shouted something lost to my ears. My chest burned. The pain in my side roared. All I could feel was the foggy haze as all of my energy drained out of me, creeping out like shards of glass ripping from my skin. Then, following the mind-burning chaos there was a sharp prick in the back of my neck and I found myself falling. There wasn't even time to catch myself.


	12. Sacrifices

**AN:** Here is a nice _long_ update for all of my wonderfully awesome readers :) Goodness do emotions go all over the place in this one. Hopefully you all like it. And I thought we were done with all of the violence and abuse? Not yet! You get some action again in this chapter. How about that?

I ahve a question for you guys as well. A reviewer asked me about this and I have to say I kinda like the idea. What would you guys think if I posted a chapter through Zetsu's POV? I'd probably do a mirror chapter where he's not in it all of the time so I could add a different side to the plot while at the same time show you what I have Zetsu thinking in that split mind of his.

Would you guys like that? Anyone?

Let me know!

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><p><strong>Chapter 12<strong>

**Sacrifices**

I awoke to furious pounding against my skull. White lights shot across my eyes with a dull aching thudding between my ears. The world melted back into basic shapes, some not even worthy of the title as figures and objects twisted and bent around me, dancing around as if lit on fire. At first, there was nothing, nothing but the constant pulsation against my brain, but then slowly the feeling spread down making me aware of the rest of my body.

Whites faded into darks, thuds into stabs, and blurs into defined shapes. Seconds ticked by, beating down on me with silent drums and weights. I groaned. The vibrations traveled through my chest in pangs of needles and pins.

Faintly I tried lifting my head. A wave of nausea knocked me down sending my stomach into a fit of twists and turns.

_Wh-What happened?_

Something heavy fell onto my forehead, indenting under the pressure. Another groan escaped my lips before I felt the pressure cease for a moment. After another pause, it was back firmer than before. Nearly urgent.

I'd never thought I would feel this way. This was how people must feel when they're waiting for death, craving to feel anything outside of the numb void surrounding them. In my head, I couldn't help but laugh, causing strange sensations to break out over my body. Part of me knew I wasn't going to die. Feeling so cut off, so … alone inside. The very occurrence made me want the limb-breaking pain or the icy grasp of death. Anything to come out of this state.

I waited.

"Amaya…-chan… Amaya-chan!"

With some effort, I managed to open my eyes. Whites were no longer bright. Darks consumed everything. Frowning, I blinked, trying to focus, but all that met my eyes for the longest time was the complete and utter darkness.

"Am-a-ya-chan!"

Tobi's face broke in front of me sending my heart battering into my throat. Gasping, I drew back instantly reaching for the kunai under my pillow. However, my hand found neither kunai nor even the warm comfort of a bed. My arm didn't even seem to move from its spot dead against my side. I tried again to no avail.

I frowned, blinking back the darkness to no avail. The feelings of their chakras alerted me to everyone's presence before I could see them. This time I forced myself to move, shifting my body like dead weights, inch by inch. Sitting up, I flinched, feeling a stabbing pain cut into my side. Again everything twisted, swirling and morphing together into one large confusing blob. Flinching, pain shot through my eyes and I collapsed back on the unforgiving ground with a flop.

"Ah! I knew it. Amaya-chan's okay!" Tobi shouting making me cringe.

Zetsu growled. "_**Shut up Tobi**__._"

"But—!"

I let out a soft grumble silencing everyone. Slowly opening my eyes, I made out the figure of four people around me, their chakra swirling around them mostly in agitation letting me put a name to a blur. Kisame and his still unseen partner, Itachi were nowhere in sight from what I could feel.

I felt a pain of regret hit me as I began remembering my fight with Kisame. Things had gone too far. Somehow in the end, whatever that was, Kisame couldn't defend himself. He couldn't fight me but I still didn't stop. I could have killed him.

I might have.

Pein stepped forward. My gaze shifted over towards him but I could make out little more than the stark orange color of his hair and the edges of his cloak in the dark. My eyes hadn't quite adjusted yet.

When I glanced to see everyone else I was shocked to find six people in the room instead of the four I felt. That had never happened before. I must have been hit harder than I thought. My eyes moved towards the two people I couldn't feel, only to find the unmistakable figure of Kisame and an unknown man. At least I assumed it was Kisame. It was no longer him, but only a hologram in his place—another thing I had never seen before. A hologram taking the place of an actual person and not as a genjutsu? Impossible. Yet, there he stood.

Eagerly, I scanned over Kisame's hologram, sad I couldn't actually see him to tell how much damage I had done. Relief to see him was so strong it shocked me. Despite nearly killing him, I did actually like the man. It would hurt if I had killed the only person I seemed to get along with here besides Katsu. If his holoform was anything to go by then he must be severely damaged still by the way it flickered constantly, as if keeping it there was a chore within itself. I cringed, forcing myself to look away. He would survive though. He would make it.

I quickly placed the other smaller figure as Itachi. _An Uchiha,_ I realized, faintly recalling which Clan his blood red Sharingan eyes were from. Standing next to Kisame, he looked rather small, but I was unable to say more about the unknown man from his hologram. His eyes were cold and sealed, locked up tighter than I had ever seen before.

I turned from them both to study the room I was in, curious to know where I could possibly be. My eyes still couldn't take in anything except I was sitting on the frigid floor in a small dark room. After a long pause, I could faintly make out the shape of a giant stalactite shooting up from the ground. Subconsciously I scanned the room, hoping for the one face I wanted to see.

Katsu was nowhere to be seen.

Tobi stood eagerly by my side, shifting and fidgeting around excitedly in a way only he could, Zetsu standing further off. My eyes instinctively drifted to meet his. His golden eyes were already waiting for my gaze but I couldn't help but frown at what I could read from his grim face. Something had happened. Puzzled, I furrowed my eyebrows as I tried to think of what that meant for me. His Venus flytrap snapped shut making me jump, eventually only peeking open enough for one golden orb to stare out.

"W-Why…" My voice cracked, and I had to pause to clear my throat before continuing. "Why am I here?"

A force of wind jerked at something around my neck and before I could react, I heard a snap and my hexagonal crystal necklace flew off my neck directly into Pein's open hand. I gasped, jerking up too late to grasp my neck but the damage was already done. The Shuumi Scrolls were already in Pein's hand. There was only one way he could ever know…

My eyes fell on Zetsu.

Pein spoke, his voice sickly sweet to my ears. "Zetsu has informed me we may have underestimated you. It appears as though you have been keeping vital information from us."

I couldn't help the feeling of … betrayal I felt. He had told them. Everything apparently. After all, of this time he had been playing me, only faking to keep my secret like the sick freak he was. Glaring over at Pein, I realized there was only one thing that was going to come out of this; they were going to use Katsu to get me to do what they wanted. He was going to get hurt, and it was all going to be Zetsu's fault. _Zetsu_ I growled making a fist.

All of the people in the room seemed to sense the significant and danger now. Even Tobi had quit bouncing around, everyone else's eyes burning into my head like daggers. Not condemning, but analyzing. Like a science experiment. It made me sick.

"I would like you to show the names and pictures of all of the current jinjurican of all of the nations."

_That again?_ I quickly hid all of my anger inside, turning towards Pein with a small smile I knew would only make him angry. I would get back at Zetsu soon enough. For now though, I'd have to deal with Pein. "I can't," I announced. The confession never felt so good.

A gut retching force slammed into me head on throwing me across the room. My eyes widened as the sudden wind hit me, instantly forcing all the air out of my lungs. My back slammed into the wall, shattering the hard stone with a loud _crack_! For a second my vision flickered, my body unable to register all of the pain from my unhealed body, but I refused to black out. I wouldn't give him the satisfaction. As I sunk down into a heap on the ground I smiled sickly, chuckling at whatever just happened to avoid facing all of the pain and torture going through my body. I laughed for the pain. For the irony. For the screwed up way it all turned out. I laughed. I stared into Pein's ringed purple eyes, not caring what he had somehow done to me, unable to hold in my chuckles. "Don't toy with me girl," he warned darkly.

"I'm not," I laughed, clutching my side. Each intake of breath brought stabbing pain into my lungs but I couldn't stop from laughing. It was all I had left. Seeing his eyes narrow only brought more amusement to the moment.

Just as I though another force knocked into me from nowhere. I couldn't see where it had come from or what it was, but I knew one thing now as I was pulled forcefully across the ground towards Pein: he was controlling it. My arm twisted painfully under me bit my lip to keep from giving the satisfaction of seeing my torment. With my eyes contorted in pain, I laughed harder until I found myself coughing uncontrollably. I didn't break.

I couldn't.

Someone stepped forward. The small movement stopped the pain and I slowly grinding to a halt, my breathing easing into a ragged but manageable pant. When I tried to lift my head up though, I found myself in another fit of coughing. Blood splattered the ground. My blood. Before he could throw another one of his mysterious hits, I dipped into my chakra mending the broken ribs and damage from Kisame and my fight earlier. The energy healed much faster than before, quickly snapping them back as they should be and eagerly repairing the shredded skin along my side.

By the time I sat up, I noticed Zetsu had been the one who stepped forward. A strange look had crossed the white half of his face, but it appeared he was fighting whatever came over him with his other half in his head. If I didn't know better, I would say it was confusion. Right now, I couldn't give a _shit_ about how he looked the fucker. I glared at him, whipping the blood from my mouth. He did this. Whatever he thought he could get out of telling Pein everything he had sure as hell better have it now.

The weight of Pein's gaze turned my attention back to him. I frowned, struggling to my feet. Replacing the sick smile on my face I quickly put back on the act that I enjoyed this. If only that was the truth. "As I said before, I can't. I've already tried to see the jinjurican. It doesn't work. For some reason I can't see them. Guess that's too bad for you."

"Oi!" Tobi exclaimed nearly making me jump a mile. Spinning around I was shocked to see he was sitting cross-legged against the far wall. I had forgotten he was in here. "Really? Wow! That's not good. Did you here that Sempai? Amaya-chan can't help us!"

Zetsu's face darkened. "_Eh? You again?_ _**I thought I told you to shut up**__._"

"Then I want you to show me a list of all of the names of everyone in each village and see which name doesn't appear."

"Sounds to me like you're fucked," I snapped, lifting my chin.

Konan emerged from the shadows of the room. I didn't bother to glance back at her. I had sensed her presence in the room the moment I had woken up, along with the others. Pein seemed unfazed by the movement. "I will kill the boy."

Unable to stop myself I put out another large gamble. "And if you do that you know you lose my service as well. Without Katsu, you have no way to make me do anything and you can deal with your problems killing Hayato and finding the jinjurican on your own. You need that boy just as much as I do."

Pein seemed amused for a moment, not that it really showed. No one in this organization—excluding Tobi and Kisame—showed any emotion, but his eyes widened slightly. I could tell by his aurora that he gave off he was surprised. All in a split second, he was back to his unreadable self. "When you play with fire you're bound to get burnt. Are you sure this is the path you are willing to take?"

"Keep throwing me around and you'll find out," I snapped with a snarl. Not even bothering to hide what I was doing, I quickly relocated my shoulder, letting it sound with a loud pop, also rearranging my kneecap that had already been shattered and moved. To my satisfaction, I saw Zetsu twitch. Good. Let the fucker suffer. I was beyond fed up with the freak of nature.

Pein chose to change his approach. He took my necklace, turning and examining it to the minute detail. "Tell me, how do you keep your scroll in here? A seal?"

_Scroll? Only one?_ I smiled. Looks like he didn't know everything.

I scoffed, dipping inside me to heal up the rest of my body. "You'll never be able to open it. Only I can. There's not another soul that knows how."

A whistling sound brought my attention back to the present and my hand shot out on instinct. To my surprise, my necklace was dangling from my fingers, the thin braided rope torn but it was more than I thought I was going to get. I looked up, catching the eye of Itachi Uchiha out of all people.

His gaze was unlike anyone else's in this forsaken organization and I found myself immediately drawn into something deeper. In the back of my mind, I realized he could be using one of his infamous genjutsu's against me. Uchiha's were famous for them, but I wasn't scared. I stared straight back letting my soul blare out to him in all my hurt and anger. I thought I saw something for a second, something flicker across his gaze, but before I could tell what it was his eyes closed and his hologram zapped out of sight. Kisame's followed shortly after.

Turning my attention to Pein, I held my head high. "I'll give you three days. If you refuse to or fail to find a jinjurican by then I will kill you both. Don't mistake yourself as invaluable to us."

I opened my mouth to dig a deeper hole, but he seemed fed up with my attitude, instead turning his back and cutting me off. "You may go," he announced. I stared hard at his back. "Your powers are not the only way of getting what I want. The jinjurican will die either way whether you help us or not. Consider it a mere whim me keeping the boy alive as long as I have. Even if _you_ are of use to us at the moment, _he_ is not."

Shivering I turned, holding my necklace tight to my side. I stared down at the cool diamond, wishing I could vanish inside it's depths like the Shuumi Scrolls.

"Tomorrow morning you will be sent out with Zetsu on a scouting trip. For the rest of your day you will be locked in your room with no food." He walked away waving off Tobi's instant complaints. Surprisingly, Tobi had remained deadly quiet the entire conversation. Apparently though, by me going on this _mission _he wouldn't be. After a second, he stopped halfway melted into the shadows turning back. "I suggest you don't fail."

With that, he was gone, Konan vanishing seamlessly with him, leaving me with the Venus flytrap and the man wearing the orange mask.

Clenching my fists, I glared at the ground. _Why do I keep screwing this up?_ I snarled feeling the tears forming behind my eyes. I could have killed him. I should have killed them all. I should have never shown Zetsu Sarnik. I should have done more. Enraged I turned towards the cause of all of this. "Zetsu," I hissed, stretching out his name.

Clenching my teeth, I glanced vehemently towards Tobi. He had to leave. Now. Not even bothering to ask I lifted my arm sending a wall of rock flying towards him. His head snapped up as he was caught off guard. The wall pushed him back continuously moving. Just as he was going to be crushed against the wall, I twitched my fingers causing another wall to run perpendicular, shoving him out the door.

A smirk crossed Zetsu's face as he tilted his body back slightly, cracking his neck, apparently amused by my outburst. Surprisingly the white half of his face was emotionless this time, his black half smirking instead. His head tilted off to the side driving me over the edge. "_**What Onna?**_" he drawled.

I looked over at him with so much intensity even he drew back slightly though the smirk never left his face. "Take me to him. Now."

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><p>:::<p>

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><p>Normally I had enough pride and sense of whom I was to know that I was doing the right thing. Before my father was murdered, he taught me how to live, always trusting myself and never letting anyone else tell me what to do. When he died, I didn't find my life again until I met Katsu. Now, I didn't know what to do. Every time I tried to protect him or find a weakness in any of the members of this taboo organization, I only seemed to make matters worse. There was nothing I could do to help in this situation. Everything I was taught, everything I had been prepared for meant nothing. The only thing I knew now was that I had to see him.<p>

I could have escaped my room on my own and found Katsu. They hadn't changed his room. I knew because I checked every night, without fail. With all of the times I had stared at the map of their lair I could find any room in this hideout, some the members might not even know of. Yet still I would have no way into his room without the key, the key Zetsu had.

I couldn't hide my anxiety or my nerves too well even though Zetsu walked a good five feet in front of me. Every now and the Venus flytrap would shift, turning and I could feel his piecing gaze cut into me. I cringed each time, fumbling awkwardly with my hands, unsure what to do with them. Everything in my being screamed to kill him, pop his head off like a daisy and walk away without a second thought. The other half knew I couldn't do that. Not without backlash. Therefore, I tided myself, glaring vehemently at his back and dreaming off all of the ways I could tear him to shreds.

"We're here," he announced suddenly stopping.

I didn't bother to check, already feeling Katsu's intoxicating chakra leaking under the cracks of the door. Zetsu stepped forward, easily unlocking the door as if he had a million times and stepping aside.

"Who is it?" Katsu's shaky voice called from inside.

My temper flared more as I stalked in knowing they had beaten him again. _The bastards._ Zetsu seemed ready to follow me in, tailing directly after me. My last straw snapping, I spun on my heel getting right in his face, clutching the front of his cloak in my trembling fist. "Get the hell out of here now," I snarled. "Before I _kill_ you right here and throw your guts to the buzzards."

Before he could retaliate, I chucked him back, slamming the door in his face. I didn't care that if someone heard the echo they could find out I'm here and get me. All I cared for were the two arms throwing themselves around my waist and the face burying into my back.

"Nee-chan!" Katsu cried. My anger melted slightly as I placed my arms on top of his, basking in the feeling of him close to me again. Slowly the feeling of his chakra washing over me soothed most of my anger, his strong scent of lilacs and his intoxicating natural smell easing into me. Before I could turn around, I reached in with my chakra healing all of the injuries he had. I would snap if I saw what they were doing to him. It'd be too much. I was already on too short of a leash to be smashing someone's brains out.

"You came," he murmured, his voice thick.

The distinctive feeling of tears soaking the back of my shirt made something inside me crumble. He was crying. I broke.

"Of course I did silly," I whispered prying his hands off me to give him a proper hug. Despite my stress, I felt myself locking back my unruly emotions to keep from worrying him. Out of all the time I knew Katsu I'd only seen him cry a handful of times, barely enough to count on my fingers. I'd been so wrapped up in trying to plan to get out and finish my training I'd been neglecting him something awful. To have him cry, knowing I should have been able to stop it … it cut deep. He was all that mattered now. I'd never weigh him down with my problems when he was hurting. Right now, he needed me.

"Are you okay?" I murmured, carefully running my hands up and down his back. More than anything, I never wanted to let him go again.

To think, I'd just finished screwing it up more.

He didn't answer, pulling out of my grip and turning away to sit down on his bed. The candle on his nightstand flickered dangerously, casting shadows across his face, letting me see him for the first time in a while. I noticed in disdain how much he had changed since I had seen him. All baby fat that had lined his face was gone, instead replaced by the hard angled lines of a man. Rather than lines of laughter crinkling around his eyes, there were lines of worry and age, each one more of a testimony to his suffering than the last. From the ripples of his shirt, I could faintly see the muscles building on his body that had most definitely not been there before. He must have been spending his endless hours training to get so far. I creased my brow. My little Katsu was growing up.

Forcing a smile, I went over to him, sitting a careful distance away. I didn't want to force myself on him now. In a pathetic attempt to break the mood, I reached out, playfully pinching at his growing biceps. "I'm gone for a while and I come back and find you like this? You working out in here or what?" I wanted to laugh. I wanted to poke and tickle when he glanced up at me, his eyes wide and vulnerable. Anything to make him smile. Instead, my fake smile only fell off my face and my arm back down to my side.

The smile he gave me was brief and pained, his hand subconsciously rubbing the spot I had pinched. "Uh, yeah," he mumbled, looking down. "I have been. Every day."

We sat in a stiff silence for a while. I'd never been more choked up before. A part inside of me felt like it was dying, painfully aware of the rift that seemed to have formed between us since I'd been away. Did he think I gave up on him? Forgot about him? Did he think I quit caring for him?

I looked down at my hands folded in my lap, willing the tears forming in my eyes to go away. No matter what I thought of, I couldn't seem to think of any way to get around the invisible barrier that seemed to separate it.

"Do you remember when you were telling me about what you could do with chakra?" Katsu asked suddenly.

Straightening up, I sniffed, composing myself before I turned towards him. His eyes were staring straight at me, a soft mix between green and blue. Teetering between joy and sadness. Eagerly, I scooted closer, answering, "Yeah. That was when we were still on our way here. I wanted to help teach you how to climb a tree or wall with your chakra."

"Amaya-chan"—I flinched—"do you … do you think you could teach me now?" His eyes seemed to brighten more and I quickly forced a small smile, hoping it might bridge more of the gap. I'd teach him everything I knew about chakra and more if it would help. "I mean, I've been trying rally hard. I work on it every day, but I don't really know if it's helping or not so I usually just end up doing pushups or something like that instead. You said you need both physical and spiritual chakra right?"

"Mhm," I grinned. This time it came easier. He remembered. "You have to train your body and your mind. Of course, I can help you. I honestly didn't think you'd even try it until I finished my training and we could be together in a room."

At that, his eyes caught fire and he closed the distance between us like a bullet. "I get to stay with you! Like, in your room? Where we'd see each other every day? They're going to let us do that when you're done with your training? Really?"

I nodded, laughing at his boyish nature bubbling back to the surface. Upon seeing my confirmation, he leaped with an unmanly squeal into my arms, tackling me back against the bed. I barely had time to catch him, cradling him against my chest. He laughed, cheering and giggling to himself. I couldn't help but smile, carefully maneuvering us around until I was lying back on the bed with him stretched out on top of me, his face resting on my bosom. He murmured something curling into me like a child.

After a while, he seemed to sober up a bit, still holding onto his boyish excitement but it was more controlled somehow. The barrier was long gone. I felt myself sinking back into the soft bed, smiling down at him for no other reason than I could. Eventually he looked up, what he said wiping the smile off my face.

Carefully, he lifted his head, asking, "Isn't today…?"

_Today?_ I thought with a confused frown. _What could possibly be today?_

Then it hit me, forcing the air out of my lungs and crushing my heart in my throat. Grimacing, the memories flooded back all at once so strong I whimpered, closing my eyes to block out all the pain. _Oh God… How could I have forgotten?_

Over two whole months… We'd been in here for so long. Kidnapped on the day my father and baby brother died until now. To think, I had to be reminded by Katsu. What shame. I should have known the moment I woke up what today was. No wonder Katsu would have been expecting me to come today.

"Nee-chan?" Katsu called, sitting up concerned. "Are you okay?"

My eyes snapped open. Quickly I pulled Katsu back down against me, burying one hand in his shaggy dark locks while clinging to him with my other. The tears I had been holding back earlier fell freely, running down my face, staining his pillow.

_Oh God…_

Choking back my sobs, I shut out the world, holding Katsu as if my life depended on it as I let everything out. He didn't try to say a word, hiding his face in my bosom as hot tears bled through my shirt. There wasn't anything to say. Silently, we mourned together.

Neither of us spoke for a long time, his previous question still lingering in the air. Of course, Katsu would remember. How could anyone forget? This was the day my father and I finally heard the news of my mother. After years of travelling around the nations, healing and saving as many people as she could during the Great War, everything shattered for me when the news of her death came to us in the form of a dirty messenger boy, only stopping by in hopes of some food. We didn't even get to bury her body. Wistfully, I swallowed down the lump that had formed in my throat, forcing myself to answer his question. _The thirteen anniversary…_

Eventually my tears stopped. Not because they were gone or my eyes had dried. But because I wouldn't let myself cry anymore, not now. Not here. When I had to leave and go back to the safety of my room, then I would let it out. Then I would truly mourn for the ones I had lost.

Katsu's body shook with muffled sobs. "Shhh," I soothed, stroking his tangled hair, softly staring at the ceiling. I knew if I would look down and see him crying I would lose it again. I had to stay solid. Alert. I had to be able to protect him. "Shhh. Don't worry Katsu. Shhh."

"I-I-I-I h-hate it her-here," he choked.

Something spider-webbed in my chest. Katsu sobbed pitifully, curled up and cringing into himself as his world shattered around him. Instead of the strong energetic boy I used to know, a cracked shell of an abused child curled into me as if I was the last landline he had. _We have to get out of here,_ I realized. It was killing us. Killing him. Pull in him closer, I stared in determination, pulling my gaze down to look him right in the eye. I wanted him to know I was telling the truth. "We're going to get out of here. Things _will_ get better. I promise."

His tear-stained face hiccupped. "Do y-y-y-you mean i-i-it?"

Nodding once, I firmly set my gaze back onto the ceiling, stilling my hands and opening my senses. Immediately I noticed the faint smell of earth seeping into the room. Somewhere in the wall. "Shhh," I hushed aware of Zetsu's presence in the room. All of the anger, all of the pain and hurt still fresh in my mind roared for vengeance, but now I pushed it away. My mind spun off in different directions. Gently, I pulled Katsu closer. It was his time. "We're not alone here," I warned.

He gave me a curious look and I could only smile sadly at him. Kissing him quickly on the forehead, I reached down to grab his palm, pulling it up to my cheek as I had done so many times before. His eyes faded back into a deep blue. It must have hit him too. "Is it him?" he whispered.

I nodded.

I closed my eyes, holding the brief memories I still had of my family in my mental eye. Something to distract me of the intruding presence where he wasn't wanted. I was honestly surprised Zetsu had waited so long before eavesdropping.

Most things I had forgotten. I couldn't even feel the mother-daughter bond anymore. It was hard to feel something I had never really known for a long time. Just glimpses of tender moments, lingering hugs, and bright soft colors, like looking up at the sun with my eyes closed and feeling the loving cradle of a summers breeze, knowing someone important was there with me. There had only been a couple of short years… Today only made me remember the past, when times were good with Hiroshi and my father. Before I killed everyone.

Before I was one of the monsters I hated.

Tonight though, tonight I would think of my new family. Of Katsu. The five years we'd been together and the tender and precious moments we'd gone through together. Hopefully the things we would discover.

Tonight there would no time to talk about escapes or plans. There was no need to talk. Right now I was torn. The horrors of losing people close to me made everything now painfully real and it brought tears to my eyes. Because in my mind, I was doing the same thing again to the only person I hold dear to me. In my head, I knew what choice I was going to have to make. It made me hate it even more.

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><p>:::<p>

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><p>Sometime later, a soft noise came from my throat as it felt like I was being lifted. For a second my body was cold. I shivered slightly caught somewhere between a dream and reality, too tired to open my eyes. Something warm cradled me easily as I drifted softly among the clouds. Instinctively I curled closer to it burying my head into the warmth and clinging with a sleepers hold to some warmth that bunched in my fingers.<p>

There was a noise. Something soft. Rhythmic. Steady and soft. It was followed by two distinctly different noises, both causing a pleasant tingling feeling to spread through my body along with a swelling that pressed up against my head, followed by a slow sinking.

I wanted it to stop. Sleep. I wanted to sleep. Murmuring quietly, I buried deeper into the warmth, clutching tightly to it in hopes that the noise would go away. If only I could bury my head and block it out… It only grew faster and stronger, beating against my ear. The swelling rise and fall ceased. For a second I realized I missed it. "No," I mumbled. For a second the beating stopped, then burst louder and faster, racing and skipping under my ear. The swelling came back faster.

Soothing. Gently. I yawned relaxing my grip again as sleep once again reclaimed me.

My brain started to slip back into the dream. Everything became softer and less defined. I smiled softly taking a deep breath. It smelt like a mix between daffodils and earth just strong enough to sense, washing over me like the fresh smell of the forest. Curling deeper into the warmth I eased my head into a comfortable crook before letting out an incoherent murmur of soft sounds.

Then all together the warmth was gone. I shivered, curling tightly into a ball. Just like that, my world went black.

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><p>:::<p>

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><p>What could only be hours later, I murmured incoherently, faintly stirring. A gentle hum rang in my ears with the luring warmth of my blankets pulling me back towards sleep. I never realized I had gotten under the covers last night with Katsu.<p>

"Katsu!" I cried, shooting out of bed, eyes wide. I hadn't gone back to my room last night. Konan would be coming to get me for training. If I didn't find a way back then everything would be over and ….

Instead of finding the snoozing body of Katsu like the one I had expected, I was alone in a bed much too large to be the one in Katsu's room. I blinked unsure of what was going on. Looking around I didn't know what to think. The bed, the dresser, the bag in the corner—I was back in my room.

_My room? How did I get back here?_

I sat still for a moment, torn between trying to force myself to remember leaving Katsu's room and falling back into the covers for some more sleep. Everything I seemed to recall though stopped at me drifting off with Katsu wrapped firmly in my grip. Had someone brought me back here? I pondered the idea for a minute.

No, I decided. Who would have even done it?

In the end, I shrugged off, pulling myself out of bed and quickly sorting through my things to grab what I would need for the day. For a minute, I nearly pulled out my training clothes. Just as I pulled out my mesh shirt, the rest of the events of yesterday came back and I frowned. According to Pein, today was the day I had my mission with Zetsu.

I would be leaving the base…

This was my chance. All I would have to do was simply slip away from the plant man, grab Katsu, and I could be home free. It was as I had always hoped. I'd been planning this since I had gotten here, carefully piecing together the things I found out, but I never actually thought it would be coming so soon. All I had to do was pull everything together.

The map of the tunnels.

The distance I calculated from Katsu's room to the exit, judged by memorizing the distance to the nearest training room and comparing it to the distance I needed to go.

Everyone's fighting styles.

Strengths.

Weaknesses.

Everything would count on the fact I had to assume Zetsu and I would be alone when we left. Not Konan, not Kisame or Itachi. Definitely not Pein. Everything depended on that. Especially not Tobi. If Tobi were there, it wouldn't work. The memory of the immense cruel chakra leaking out of him during my fight with Kisame sent a chill racing up my spine. That must be his real strength. He must be hiding a lot more than his chakra levels too. It was no wonder I had still yet to beat the kid—or man, whatever he was. No, only Zetsu could be there. I couldn't risk fighting Tobi.

I had to be ready. No doubt, they would all be watching me closer than ever since this was my first time out. They would be expecting me to break out. Somehow, I'd have to act first.

Grabbing my kunai pouches, I easily strapped one to each thigh and then carefully went through my things. There wasn't much I would need to take. Only the things I would need. After all, there would be no coming back for anything. Clothes and food wouldn't matter now. They would only weigh me down. By the time I busted out, there wouldn't be time to stop either way. All I could take were weapons and basic medicines.

Thankfully, I would have the Shuumi Scrolls to take with me. I gingerly touched my necklace, letting the cool diamond sooth my worries for a moment as I let out all my fears. Even if they knew about Sarnik now, it would still be invaluable in avoiding any of the members once I made it out with Katsu. I'd known when they were coming and how to avoid them. Everything would be mapped out carefully right in front of my eyes.

At least the whole time I'd been here I was able to keep Chikee and Dou hidden. I'd made sure none of the Akatsuki members knew about them.

There were two quick, precise knocks on my door. Zetsu. He was the only one who knocked like that. _Time to go._

"Hold on!" I called grabbing the Akatsuki cloak from the top of my dresser and uneasily pulling it on. The snaps were awkward under my fingers considering I tried to avoid wearing my cloak like the plague, but it would be a necessity if I were actually going to pretend to go on this mission. Doubled checked to make sure I had everything, I headed towards the door.

Zetsu stood across the hallway, studying me carefully when I opened the door. Shivers ran down my spine under his scrutinizing stare. I held his gaze evenly, all too aware of the torn feelings in my head as I scrutinized his tall formidable form. Betrayed. Nervous. I couldn't skate off the fact he had actually told Pein everything, even if I knew he would. That he had caused Katsu to get hurt. Yet, none of the anger and burning hatred I felt for him resurfaced beyond a dull loathing. Yesterday seemed to have drained me of all my anger.

I didn't even dare think about what I would be doing as I held Zetsu's observant gaze with the best poker face I had, completely and utterly void of any expression. It was hard, not having a single point to stare at when I looked at him. I couldn't look into his eyes or else it would be over. His intoxicating golden eyes could pick a thought out of my head faster than I could think it.

Eventually my eyes came to rest right at the crease where black skin met white between his eyes, counting determinedly in my head to keep all other thoughts at bay. Finally, he looked away.

He turned sharply and started walking down the hallway, his footsteps only leaving phantom wisps against the stone floor. I followed silently, keeping my eyes open for any possible threat.

Two things had to be in place before my plan would work. We would have to be walking down a tunnel close to Katsu, no more than three tunnels away. I needed to be able to get there in less than two minutes if I went at a dead run. Any longer than that and all of the members would have found me, and everything would be ruined. That only would be hard enough. All Akatsuki hallways were long, yet perfectly straight, only converging when necessary. By five minutes, Katsu would be on my back and we'd have to be running through the hallways towards the front of the base. From there it should be easy enough to lose them. After all, I had studied the surrounding woods with Sarnik, memorizing all of the details for weeks now. I probably knew the trees better than anyone else possibly could.

For the second part, I'd have to stay in one of Zetsu's blind spots, on either side of his Venus flytrap where the giant green leaves blocked me from view, or behind him. From there he would be completely caught unaware as I could carefully build my chakra and launch my attack. Then, and only then would everything be perfect. Not that it would be hard in this case. Thankfully, I usually walked where Zetsu couldn't see me, most of the time wishing to avoid the uncomfortable chills his stare brought me. I couldn't take his heavy gaze.

We continued further up the hallway before turning. Everything was going smoothly so far. Near the end of this hallway, I'd have my spot, exactly three hallways away from Katsu's room at the closest location.

I gulped, keeping just out of Zetsu's sight.

Almost there. My heart was pounding in my chest. There wasn't a doubt in my mind that he could hear it trying to burst from my chest. Everything was so sharp, so vivid. The shadows created by the flickering candles gave things a haunted glow. Every footstep pounded against my ear as it echoed softly down the hallway. So loudly in my mind. Everything so loud.

I swallowed nervously, flexing my fingers. My palms clammed up as I glanced over at Zetsu who still didn't seem to suspect anything. Odd considering how observant and on top of things he usually seemed. My stomach dropped. Shivering awkwardly, I reached up clutching at my throat. It was getting harder and harder to breathe in here.

_What's wrong with me?_ I thought, forcing myself to look normal. Again, I looked over at Zetsu but the feeling came back. _Why is this so hard?_

I needed to kill him. He deserved to die after everything he had done, all of the things he had put Katsu and me. That would never be forgivable. Still I hesitated. Some part of me recoiled at the thought. All of the hatred and the desire to kill him from the other day seemed to have vanished in my head.

"Forgive me," I muttered, too quiet for Zetsu to understand.

He broke his stride, glancing back at me with his piercing golden eyes, but it was too late. My face was hard as I hit him hard in the back of the neck with the base of my palm, inserting my chakra into his nervous system. His eyes widen a second before the force of the blow sent him flying.

I stood there as his back slammed into the wall. I needed to finish him off. He was too fast and strong to leave alive. I'd be doing everyone in the world a service.

_Kill him,_ my mind ordered.

His body convulsed violently as he tried to get up, the Venus flytrap twitching and curling open and closed around his haunted form, only succeeding in falling in a heap onto the ground.

_Now._

I trembled, staring straight into his wide golden eyes. Panic. Anger. His mouth twisted furiously in pain and frustration as his arms and legs jerked out. I could see the way they shook.

Could I really kill him?

_No._

Slapping myself mentally, I turned, ready to bolt off, but my eyes couldn't tear away from him.

He wouldn't be able to move properly for at least ten minutes, I reasoned. Assuming he could figure out the scramble code I had placed on his nerve receptor that is. By then, I would already be long gone. Any message his brain tried to send out to his body would end up going to the wrong body part rendering him useless.

My fingers twitched forward, but I couldn't seem to capitalize on the opening.

_Damn it all!_

Not looking back, I sprinted down the hallways, twisting and turning with only one image in my mind. It didn't take long to get there. When I did, I wasted no time directing chakra to my feet and kicking the door off its hinges. A large _bang_ echoed through the cave.

Katsu shouted inside, startled. "Come on!" I shouted, peeking my head inside. His eyes were wide. "Hurry it up! We're getting out of here!"

In his shock, he wasn't moving fast enough. I cringed grabbing him by the hand and throwing him onto my back. Instinctively his hands and arms wrapped around me with a startled cry as I darted off through the hallways. I added more chakra to my feet making us go faster.

The eerie prickle of something going wrong ebbed at the back of my mind.

"Where are we going?" Katsu squealed, finally coming out of his shock.

"Home."

A shiver tore through his body—I could feel it—but he didn't dare say anything else. He knew the look on my face as I darted down each tunnel, quickly making my way towards the exit. All of those hours memorizing the layout of the base and where each member was at which points of the day, were for this. All for this moment. I needed to focus.

A bright light broke out at the end of the tunnel as I ran. My throat tightened. That was it. The exit. Katsu shifted on my back and my heart started to race. I could see trees and the leaves blowing softly in a cool breeze. I could already smell the sweet flowers and hear the birds chipping loudly from their hidden nests. I could taste the fresh air, feel it blowing through my hair again. Feeling freedom. Knowing nothing in the world could take this away from me. I could already _feel_ it.

Too long, I had waited for this. Dreamt of this moment.

Just then, a dark form appeared at the exit, all features black from the contrast to the sunlight behind them. No one would need to see their features to know who it was though. The two green leaves sprouting around their head gave it away. I let out a hiss, dodging and twisted in an attempt to slip past him. Without Katsu's weighing me down, I moved slower. I barely managed to dodge his foot lashing out to trip me. There wasn't a chance to his hand wrapping around my waist in midair, swinging me back into the tunnel. I frowned, forced to drop to one knees to keep Katsu on my back as I slid painfully backwards.

"Zetsu," I growled.

"You!" Katsu shouted making me flinch. He moved his chest off my back by putting one hand on each shoulder and pushing. The tight grip of his nails digging in my skin sent a zap of pain through my arms, but I tried my best not to react. "What are _you_ doing here?"

"You recovered pretty fast," I frowned.

Zetsu straightened up, but didn't say a word. I mentally cursed myself. No one could have recovered that quickly. I had scrambled all of his nerves. It should have taken him at least ten minutes to understand what was happening, let alone figure it out.

Try as I did, I couldn't help but feel … disappointed. Maybe I had been hoping since I had spared his life that he might have let us past. Let us escape. Or maybe it was because now I knew that I _would_ have to kill him. That hurt worse than I could ever imagine. There wasn't another choice.

"Rabbit no jutsu!"

I sensed the next presence before I knew what happened. I couldn't react in time to dodge a hard hit below my ribs, throwing my off balance, but I still managed to grip Katsu's body against mine. Katsu let out a startle cry as I twisted us midair. I flipped him in front of me, pushing my feet back against the wall to stop of from slamming into it. Acting out of instinct I managed to kick off, spinning in the air and catching the four shuriken that were hurling perilously towards Katsu. Before I landed, I flipped, using my momentum to launch the shuriken back towards the new enemy. I watched amazed as they all flew right through him.

Panting, I straightened up spreading my feet apart in the familiar stance I was taught. My gaze flickered to Zetsu for one second before I reestablished myself to defend against them both.

Tobi stood both hands out in front of him in an attacking stance. I shivered at the thought of how well he had hid his chakra to sneak behind me like that—assuming he hadn't simply appeared out of thin air that is. My mind couldn't register the situation I was now in yet. Instead, my eyes turned quickly towards Katsu who was leaping back up on his feet where I had left him in a ball on the ground.

"Oi! Zetsu-Sempai!" Tobi shouted the same time Katsu yelled—"What the hell was that!"

Tobi suddenly straightening up and waving over at Zetsu. "I made it in time!"

Annoyed at being ignored, I clenched my hands into fists. They were going to stand there and taunt me. I couldn't help it. "Still hiding your chakra?" I snapped drawing his immediate attention.

Zetsu stepped forward as Tobi jumped back, appearing to be startled, but I no longer fell for that lie. There was something different about that man, something he wasn't telling anyone. I knew it. I weighed my chances of making it out of here with Katsu against the odds of fighting both of them. Itachi and Kisame were supposedly out on their mission again, but I was sure Konan and Pein were still hidden in the depths of the hideout. No doubt, the fight would make a lot of noise. Anything near the mouth of the cave would draw their attention and then there definitely wouldn't be a chance to win this. Besides, I had already run through ever scenario in my head already. In this one, we lost. I couldn't fight them both and defend Katsu at the same time. I didn't know how to use my new power yet.

There wasn't even a chance for me to get Katsu out and away. They would find him and kill him before he had a chance to make it to any village. He didn't have training and experience I did to hide and sneak away.

Katsu shouted something but I couldn't hear. Already my mind was starting to accept the one thing I would never forgive myself for. I looked over at Katsu, foolishly taking my eyes off both Tobi and Zetsu for the moment, but it wouldn't matter now. I was hoping they would capitalize on it. Maybe if I played this off, acting as if I wasn't giving up he wouldn't think I was so weak as to surrender. Maybe he could still have the trust to look at me the same.

If I pretended to fight…

There was a scream, whether it was from me or Katsu I wasn't sure. Pain shot through my stomach as the fist twisted, pounding me mercilessly against the wall in a single blow. I coughed clutching my chest, but did nothing to stop the next punch aimed for my face.

"Amaya-chan!" Katsu screamed running over towards me.

Zetsu didn't bother turning as Tobi appeared out of nowhere behind him, knocking him in the back of the neck. I cringed, looking away as his eyes widened and he fell. Before he could hit the unforgiving ground, Tobi's arm snuck around his waist, catching him. I let out a sigh, slumped against the wall.

_I'm sorry Katsu…_ I thought numbly.

I let out a choked gasp as Zetsu's cold hand wrapped around my neck, pulling me to my feet. Something popped, crushing under the pressure making my body convulse. Panicked, my eyes snapped towards Zetsu's face and I could see it. Anger boiled uncontrolled in his eyes, ready to rip me apart. As the metallic taste of blood pooling into my mouth overwhelmed me I knew he wouldn't give me the curtsey of forgiveness. Effortlessly, he pulled me up against the wall to his eye level. I could feel my body twitching. Feel him crushing my windpipe. Digging his nails into my throat. Crushing me against the rock behind me.

Just like before. Only this time I didn't bother trying to sabotage him in any way. I deserved this for my failure.

"_Never try that again_," his smooth voice hissed, "_or I will enjoy eating you alive_." Still I forced a smile, ignoring the blood bubbling out my mouth. His eyes narrowed into slits, flickering to the blood. A new definition of anger morphed his face. I winced, closing one eye painfully as he seemed to bask in my torture. "_**You listening wench!**_"

With a large grin, I spat right in his face. The blood splattered across the white half making him draw back. With a snarl, he threw me painfully onto the ground.

Coughing violently, I placed my hand to my throat quickly using my chakra to heal the damage. From the corner of my eye, I watch pained as Tobi carelessly tossed Katsu onto his shoulder. "_Take him to a new cell_," Zetsu ordered. "_**And tell Leader about her attempt to escape**__._"

I didn't look at either of them as I slowly tried to focus on my breathing. I'd already thought of what they were going to do. No matter what they did now, it was better than seeing them kill Katsu as I fought. In my head, I knew that would have been what would have happened. Rather than trying to take me on, they would exploit my single biggest weakness: Katsu. It is faster, easier. None of these monsters here would fight fair.

As Zetsu passed, he easily kicked my supporting hand out from under me causing me to fall. A small cry of pain escaped my lips before I could stop it. I glared up at him, awkwardly shoving myself back up. The second I tried to move, I started coughing violently, ridding myself of any of the blood that was still in my lungs.

"B-Bastard…" I rasped.

"_**We're leaving**_," his other half stated, walking towards the exit.


	13. Alone With A Murderer

**AN:** Is it weird that Zetsu being a cannibal is just now coming out in my story? That just hit me when I was reviewing this chapter to make sure I didn't screw it up.

Ok, so originally I wasn't going to post this chapter until I posted the chapter from te POV of Zetsu - which I'm doing a mirror of last chapter with, but I've ended up scrapping and redoing that chapter like five times. I feel really really bad for keeping you all waiting when I have this delicious chapter all ready to go! My empathy won out so here's this chapter. This is probably one of my favorite chapters in this whole story, just because it was so much stinking fun to write. All of the emotions and the drama, and then what happens and AH! I just love it. This chapter is where the entire idea of my story came from originally.

Concerning the chapter from Zetsu's POV, I've decided that I'm just going to post that in another story, as a short story. (Or maybe, I'll just end up moving around my chapters so they're in order. I honestly havn't really decided, lol.) But it is coming. I'm over halfway done with it for the fifth time and this time I atually like it. I took a different spin to the whole "Zestu's duel personalities" situation and I really hope you all like it. It sounded cool to me when I came up with the idea.

For all of the reviews and adds that I've gotten with this story, thank you so much! Honestly, my one message i got about my dear fan that checks every day for a new chapter nearly broke my heart that I was so aweful in having this done and keeping you waiting! :'( You know who you are my wonderful person, and this chapter is just for you.

Read and Review please. Tell me what you think of the awesome sausy drama! :D

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><p><strong>Chapter 13<strong>

**Alone With A Murderer**

I didn't have a chance to stand before Zetsu changed his mind and walked back towards me. Instinctively cowering, I went to draw back but he grabbed my arm anyways, yanking me to my feet before everything started to burn. Chakra exploded over everything, mixing and leaking together, coating everything in Zetsu's dark, controlling chakra. I gasped, remembering this feeling from before. My molecules tearing. My body merging with Zetsu's as he slid down into the ground.

_No, no, no, no, no! _I cried, trying to claw his hand off my arm. His grip was iron. _Not again! Not this!_

I gasped still fighting to tear free but already it was too late. I was once again entwining with the ground. Our bodies had slowly started to merge as we sunk deeper, our feet twisting and swirling together, joined by the rest of us as we fell into the earth. This time I could think more; feel more besides the gut wrenching pain. I was aware of the other heart beating against mine, the two consciously other than my own.

Time passed so quickly. Faintly I realized I could see. My eyes must have been closed last time to miss such a sight. Everything. All around me, three hundred and sixty degrees in every direction. I could see it all. The sky, the trees, deeper in the earth, all if it flew by at an alarming pace, blurring and twisting together in a way that made me sick.

Then just as quickly as it had come, it was gone. I gasped, clutching my chest to stop the fire burning through my body. A fit of coughing tore through my body like a hurricane as I found myself clinging to long cool blades of grass in my hands. The ground seemed to shake underneath me with the sky crashing up and down in front of my eyes. My stomach coiled into knots.

"_**Get up**_," Zetsu demanded, already walking off.

I gagged, struggling to keep my stomach where it should be. Hesitantly I tried to stand, forcing my body to comply as I closed my eyes. I felt like dying here in the grass. There was no way I could ever look at myself after screwing up so badly. The second I even attempted to straighten a sense of vertigo hit me as well and I was thrown back on the ground, clutching the grass for dear life.

By the time I finally managed to wobble onto my feet, Zetsu gave me one disdainful look, turned around, and starting walking off through the trees. Vaguely I realized I stumbled after him, my stomach churning too violently for me to account for anything other than to hold down my bearings. I had to push myself to keep up with him, my chest collapsed in on itself, making it harder to breathe.

It was silent as we walked.

Slowly, I felt my purchase come back, giving me the time and space to collect where exactly we seemed to be. Finally, it didn't feel as if my stomach was going to shoot up into my head at the slightest turn. From the looks of things, we were far away from the Akatsuki base. There were nothing but trees and shrubs all around, some branches down forming canopies of intricate shapes and unique sights. With Zetsu's mind-numbing pace, I couldn't pause to see anything too closely.

The sun felt good against my skin despite how horrible my body felt. Hearing the grass crunch under my feet, feeling the soft breeze blowing through my hair, it felt so _fresh_. I took a deep breath of the clean air, basking in the gentleness of the chakra here. There was nothing threatening, nothing cruel—excluding the beast walking way ahead of me. The only things here to disturb the peace were birds singing beautifully in the tall trees. Out here, I could just … _be._

I wasn't sure how long we walked. All I knew was it was quiet and my legs burned. It felt like hours, stretching and blurring together in a grim agony, but I rationalized it probably hadn't been that long. The silence suited me though. I didn't have to worry about him teasing me for being beaten so easily again or being foolish enough to try to escape. In my heart, I knew he would be cruel, exposing every weakness he knew about me to knock me down. Right now, I had all the time in the world to clear my head.

It didn't last. When the sun started to set Zetsu abruptly stopped in a small clearing surrounded by trees and shrubs. "_**We'll stop here tonight**_."

I waited several paces back from him to see what he'd do, absentmindedly rubbing my neck subconsciously where he had bruised it. After a moment of silence, I noticed he had walked over to a nearby tree and sat down, staring at me. His golden eyes following my every movement, reminded me too much of when he had first captured me. I realized humorlessly that this was probably how it would have been traveling to the Akatsuki without Katsu. Quiet. Boring. Unnerving.

Awkwardly I looked around to see if there was anything to give off heat here. I hadn't thought to bring my blanket with me. I hadn't brought anything but weapons actually. And my necklace. The Akatsuki cloak provided a lot of warmth, but I knew without a heat source I would be freezing by the time the sun vanished beyond the horizon. Finally surrendering I looked over at Zetsu debating on which was worse, talking to that _thing_ or freezing to death. Honestly, I was quite considering freezing to death.

Eventually I conceded, shoving aside my immature thoughts. "Are we going to build a fire of anything?"

"_No_," he stated simply. "_You're not going anywhere._"

I frowned glaring at him. "Screw that," I muttered under my breath.

This was the forest. Forests were naturally cooler than open ground because the leaves cast shade everywhere blocking the sun. Nighttime would only be colder. There wasn't a chance I was going to sit here and freeze tonight. Being alone with him was bad enough. Being alone with him and freezing my butt of and most likely getting sick because of it was worth the risk of getting hurt again. After all, in a sick way I could always just heal myself if he hit me again. It wasn't as if he could cause me anymore emotional damage.

"I'm going to collect some firewood," I announced, turning and making my way towards the woods.

"_**No**_," his other half repeated, eyes narrowing.

I snapped my heads towards him, cocking my hip. "Why not? It's going to be cold as hell." His Venus flytrap visibly twitched at my tone.

"_You no longer have the privilege of being out of my sight_."

_Jerk_, I thought glumly. I turned my back towards him staring out at the forest. There wasn't really anywhere I could go out here even if I wanted to. Since Zetsu hadn't let me walk out of the base, I had no idea where we were. I'd be more likely to get lost and starve to death than actually get away, find my way back to the cave, find Katsu, and get away safely. There was virtually no downside to letting me go and get firewood. He wouldn't even have to do anything.

"Whatever," I grumbled walking towards the woods. I felt him tense behind me—even his chakra pattern flickered—but I waved my hands dismissively. "Don't worry, I'll be back."

The air shifted behind me. I turned coming face-to-face with him. Being this close to him sent shiver down my spine, along with the familiar twisting flush in my stomach. My knees felt weak all of the sudden. The hairs on the back of my neck stood up defensively, but I played it off. I must have hit my head too hard when I let Zetsu kick my butt. "_**I said you're not leaving my sight**_," he hissed.

His warm breath hit my face making me shudder slightly. I hadn't been this close to him since we were back in my room and I was showing him how Sarnik worked. I frowned rubbing my neck again. For a second his eyes fell down to the finger marks lining my neck, seeing the dark bruise I could feel rising to the surface of my skin.

I closed my eyes briefly, listing off the reasons it would be fine for me to go. He confused me too much every time I looked at him to keep my thoughts straight. While I knew I should be angry with him, I couldn't help but feel numb towards him. My emotions had been running around too charged to compute things anymore. All I could tell now is I felt like I was standing in the middle of a cloud.

"Look, I don't have a single idea where we are. I have a better chance of getting lost than finding someone out here. It's getting dark and it's going to get cold. I've been in the mountains enough to know when a pressure system is coming. All I'm doing is getting wood. I'm not going to go anywhere."

"_**I don't care**_."

"Fine!" I sighed, turning back towards the woods. His hand grabbed my shoulder but I shrugged it off before I could recognize the shock that shot through my system. "Come with me if you don't trust me then! Not like I care. I told you I'm only getting firewood."

I didn't look back as I left the clearing but the soft footsteps behind me told me he was indeed following me. He was annoyingly quiet for someone so large and oddly shaped. _Paranoid bastard,_ I grumbled. Ignoring him, I looked around for any loose wood I could use. It didn't take long to find some. A decent sized tree had been fallen onto another dead tree keeping it off the ground. I wasted no time breaking off a couple of branches and gathering leaves for something to burn quickly.

"Do you want to make yourself useful and carry something?" I asked, filling my arms.

Only silence answered me.

It took a bit longer to make it back to the clearing but within the hour, I had set up a small fire using a couple rocks I found to keep it from spreading, and was sitting cross-legged trying to get some flint to spark. The entire time two golden eyes followed me, never missing a single movement and frankly pissing me off. How the hell was I supposed to do anything with two holes drilled into the back of my head?

In anger, I forced the rocks together harder. Finally, they sparked.

"There!" I smiled, finally getting a spark. I bent down gently blowing on the flame but it withered and died the moment I stopped stoking it with a twig.

Zetsu snorted, mumbling something to himself. I glared, picking up the flint again. _Stupid plants no good for anything._ I worked the flint again before finally becoming irritated. Now I was fully aware of Zetsu's smirk. Something snapped in my mind and under my breath I mumbled, "Katon."

Instantly the flint sparked, this time instantly catching the leaves on fire. I smiled smugly, watching as the flame slowly spread to the logs. I bet he didn't know I could do basic fire jutsu too. While it was one of the smallest types of chakras in me, my father had found it a necessary to force me to be able to spew a pathetic flame in case something happened and I was stranded by myself. There were many things the bastard didn't know I could do, I realized with a smirk. He didn't even know there was more than one scroll. I grin evilly at the thought of still knowing something he didn't, but my ego didn't get to last for long.

He came over sitting by the fire and staring into the flames for a moment. "_**That wasn't a natural flame**_," he stated, not even glancing at me. His freakish mood swings were starting to give me whiplash.

I frowned. "What do you mean?"

"_Fire jutsu_?" his white half asked relatively surprised. He nodded answering his only question.

_Why didn't he know?_ I asked myself, a bit freaked out. After all, both of his personalities belonged to the same person. It wasn't as if they were like different people in there…

I stared at him funny realizing his black half had seen through my trick while the white half of him didn't. _Maybe he is more like two different people…_ I mused. No wonder the bastard was so good at being a royal prick. He had two evil sides to reflect on for it. I rolled my eyes, turning back to the fire and curling my knees up to my chest to conserve heat.

We sat in silence for a moment both of us staring into the fire. It wasn't like sitting with other people though. Every second felt like I was in shackles, locked down without any freedom to move or think. It was suffocating.

My mind started to wonder back to what I had done earlier to get myself into this situation. My first reaction was the mentally chide myself. It was stupid for me to try to escape. All I ended up doing was putting Katsu in danger again, this time probably ending up hurting him more. I cringed at the idea. I was stupid to think I could make it work. Of course, someone would find out what was going on and Tobi would most likely be the first person to show seeing how he was the fastest of the Akatsuki. If only I had just taken out Zetsu when I had the chance none of that would have happened. We could have made it. We could have gotten out.

One thing stood out to me though. _Never try that again or I will enjoy eating you alive._

What the hell did that mean?

It wasn't as if he was actually going to…

The wording suddenly dawned on me and an uncontrollable shiver shook my body. Eat me? It sounded too surreal to be true.

_He couldn't be,_ I gasped, stealing a glance over at him. He sensed my gaze, looking up. I froze. Suddenly his piercing gold eyes had an entire new feeling to them. They flickered over my face looking too closely. Too calculating. Now I could see why. He was a predator.

I opened my mouth to ask, then paused trying to reword my question. It wasn't every day I had to ask someone this. Asking him seemed so preposterous. "Are you …" I began, but the words died on my tongue before they could come out.

A cannibal?

Really?

Then again, I couldn't exactly recall a time I had seen Zetsu eat the entire time I had known the man. Not once did he stop and eat an apple or some dried up meat when bring Katsu and I to the base. There, I never even saw the man outside of training. For all I knew, he _could_ be.

Zetsu stared over at me, his posture stiff and cold. His eyes were locked up too tight for me to tell what he was thinking and I had no choice but to continue.

Gulping, I forced myself to continue. "Are you a … cannibal?"

He looked back at the fire not saying anything. I watched, aghast as his lips curled back over his long white teeth in a sick smirk. They were surprisingly round, not at all how I would imagine a cannibals teeth would be. I'd always imagined they would be more like Kisame's. Sharp. Deadly. Instead, they were rounded and smooth, promising a slow agonizing death, consumed by the enemy. It was oddly more terrifying.

Another chill ran down my spine. This time I knew why. It explained how I had never seen him eat the entire time being with him, why everyone stood further away from him despite being fellow members, and explained why he looked at everything that way: calmly, silently, as if he was ripping people apart piece by piece in his mind. He _was_. It wasn't because he was the spy of the Akatsuki and held slightly higher than the other's positions. It was because he really _was_ a monster. A _cannibal._ Even the rest of the Akatsuki, excluding Tobi, distanced themselves from him. I wondered briefly if their odd orange masked man even knew that about his so-called Sempai.

I'd been stuck with him since day one not having a single clue what potential danger I was in.

A morbid fascination crossed my mind before I could stop myself. I'd never met a cannibal before, most likely for good reason. Here I was. All alone with one. The thoughts came one by one, each one more frightening in an exhilarating way. I'd never even thought about what I person would taste like before. The idea sickened me, yet I couldn't help but be curious. It was natural, I think, to be curious about the unknown. I shifted, torn between running away from him and moving closer. It was so wrong, eating people.

Quickly switching my train of thought, I tore my eyes off Zetsu, trying to think of anything else. Now I'd never be able to go to sleep.

He could eat me.

"Are they going to hurt Katsu?" I whispered to myself.

He looked up at me. I mentally kicked myself, not realizing I had asked that aloud. Now that it was out though I couldn't stop myself from studying his face for some reaction, anything that might tell me if I had just caused the only person I really cared about to be beaten, all because of me. There was nothing. His face was unreadable.

I looked back down at my feet.

A cold breeze blew through causing the fire to flicker. I shivered, curling my knees closer to my chest for more warmth. Zetsu stared back at the fire. The flames reflection licked across his eyes and I found it was harder to tear my gaze away than normal.

"_That's not for me to decide_."

Neither of us spoke for a while. I'm sure neither of us would have if it weren't for the strange feeling that urged me to say something. The quiet felt dangerous now. Surprisingly, Zetsu spoke before I could, the mean edge back in his voice. "_Where were you going to go if you did escape? __**Back to your pitiful village?**__ We would have tracked you down again,_" he said harshly.

"I have no allegiance to my village," I replied darkly. "That's not my home."

He looked oddly at me, but didn't comment for a long time. There was only the crackle of the fire eating away at everything it touched. Eventually I spoke just to have something to say. "I don't have a home or family. I don't have anyone. Only Katsu. That's why I ran. I can't live with knowing he lies in his room, beaten and starved all because of me." Zetsu had the audacity to look ashamed. My temper flared when he couldn't look me in the eye. After beating Katsu, he couldn't even man-up and look me in the eye? "That's right. I know about that. My allegiance is only to him."

Zetsu didn't reply, making me feel foolish for admitting that aloud. My anger burned down into embarrassment, and I quickly shuffled a bit to get further away from him.

Of course, Zetsu wouldn't understand. How could he? He wasn't anything like me. Zetsu didn't have anyone to love or try to protect. He didn't have someone he'd do anything for.

"_You can never depend on anyone but yourself. That is what I believed_," he stated after a long time. I jolted, caught off guard by the sincerity of his answer and I couldn't help but sit up and stare at him. He met my gaze evenly and for once, there wasn't anything hiding what he was thinking. I could read everything in his eyes.

Then, what he said registered. Believed? If that wasn't what he believed in now, then what did he believe in?

I couldn't stop myself. "Then why are you here Zetsu?"

His eyes looked deep into my own, studying me hard for a long time, looking for something. I didn't move as I studied him as well. It was as if I was talking to the man that found me after my nightmare again. The man who comforted me and listened. The man who didn't judge me. Eventually he ripped his gaze away from me, staring deep into the fire again.

"_**I only have allegiance to Tobi. I am here to serve him**_."

Sighing I laid down beside the fire, feeling more at ease and thoughtful than I had in a long time. It would be hard to get to sleep now, my mind spinning in a million different directions, yet at the same time I couldn't think of a single thing. For once, it didn't feel like I was in a prison. Maybe he had won part of my trust back at that moment, or maybe it was my exhaustion clouding my better judgment, but one thing was for sure.

I fell asleep next to a cannibal feeling safer than I'd been in months.

The smell of blood woke me. _Zetsu!_ I gasped, shooting upright. Desperately I searching my body, patting myself down with hurried motions to make sure nothing was missing. Two legs, two arms, hands, feet, fingers, ears… I let out a sigh of relief when all of my little "edible" easy access parts were still intact. _If the blood wasn't coming from me, then where…? _Curiously, I looked around for the smell. Nothing _seemed_ different. I was still lying in a small clearing in the middle of the woods, the remnants of the long extinguished fire next to me. Zetsu was still—

My body went rigid. Instead of the single plant man, I was expecting there were two bodies further back in the clearing. One _dead_ body. Zetsu crouched low over the body, his strong back curved over and the Venus flytrap wide open, peeled back so his mouth could easily reach his victim. I couldn't see much of the other man since he was on the other side of Zetsu, but what I could see made my stomach heave. His face was turned my way, frozen in a state of terror he saw before he died, pale and bloody. A single arm was stretched above his head, jerking and twitching each time Zetsu seemed to dip lower towards him. My brain couldn't register what was happening until I saw Zetsu's head dip up, hearing the man's flesh rip from his skin.

"Oh God," I gagged, spinning away. Unable to stop myself I spilled everything in my stomach, feeling the acidic burn shoot up into my nose and scar my mouth. Grabbing my throat, I closed my eyes my body shuttered and trembled, jolting as my stomach kept trying to press more out.

A snarl cut through the air. I didn't dare look back at him, covering my eyes with my other hand. It didn't really matter. I could still picture it in my head. Zetsu was eating him. _Eating _him. Zetsu was crouched over some person _eating_ some random man I didn't even know. Any squired fascination I had for the idea of being a cannibal was lost forever seeing exactly what happened.

"_You're finally awake_," Zetsu's white voice murmured almost gently.

My stomach squeezed threatening to come up again. Even the white half was a cannibal. I don't know why I had assumed he wasn't too; after all, they were in the same body. It felt wrong knowing his better half was demonic too. I could have pictured the black half, with his angry temper and no-crap attitude. I could have taken him. Nevertheless, the white half too? For some strange reason that seemed to make it all the worse. Quickly wiping my mouth with the back of my sleeve, I shuttered. The scent of blood was too strong. Clamping my hand over my mouth and nose, I opened my eyes, searching for anything to take my mind off what was happening behind me. Anything.

"W-Wh-What happened?" I gaped, barely able to force out the words.

There was another brief silence as my knees trembled, ready to give out. I could picture him wiping the blood off his face, turning to see me with the hands that had killed the man, doomed him to being eaten. Finally, the rough voice answered, most likely caught between bites. The hairs on the back of my neck stood up straight. "_**We were attacked by thieves. You didn't wake up**__._" To answer my question the smoother, softer voice continued, "_I … killed one and the others fled_."

"O-Oh," I panted thankful he refrained from saying he most likely only killed the one to eat him. If he had, I didn't think I would have been able to keep from throwing up again.

Slowly, I forced my sense to come back to me. _Calm down. He's just eating. The guy's already dead. He doesn't even feel it. It's no different from eating regular meat,_ I soothed, convincing myself to steal another peak in order to brace myself. My stomach churned again seeing the human. _Only normal meat isn't a person._ I knew deep down that I would never be able to take the sight in front of me.

Turning my attention away from him, I made myself think about something else.

_We were attacked and I didn't even wake up?_ I thought with a frown. I was doing real well on this mission. Gosh, if I wasn't careful I might even sleep through the actual mission too! Still, I couldn't help but feel grateful to Zetsu. He probably had to protect me when we were attacked, driving off three men by himself. I knew all too well how cruel people could be in fights where by-standers were involved. No one fought fair anymore.

We fell back into silence, Zetsu turning back around to finish off the rest of his meal when I didn't say anything else or ask questions. I stayed firmly facing the other direction, intent on not watching Zetsu devouring the rest of the dead body, but it was impossible to tune out the sounds of him eating away the flesh and breaking the bones. It would never be normal, being a cannibal. Three wasn't a single doubt in my mind it was by far one of the most disgusting and vile things a person could do. _But,_ I was getting used to it though, the idea of Zetsu being one. At least I understood why he was always looking at things the way he did.

From the corner of my eye, I watched as Zetsu struggled to move over his prey without tensing and adjusting his position. It looked painful. Jerky almost. Trying hard to stomach the scene in front of me, I turned my attention to Zetsu. I told myself it was the least I could do if he really protected me from those thieves. I kept my attention solely focused on Zetsu, analyzing him and pinpointing just where he had to have gotten hurt. His side or back, I reasoned from the way he was moving. Whatever I did though, I kept my eyes anywhere but on him eating the dead body in front of my eyes. This was still only my first time actually _seeing_ him do this.

It was wrong.

When he was done and there was nothing left of the body but the bloody puddle of where he had laid, the Venus flytrap shifted on his shoulders, closing slightly to hide his movements as he wiped away the blood from his face. Internally I was thankful of that. I don't know if I could handle the stress it would put on me actually seeing the blood all over his mouth. It'd make it too real.

I scanned the ground for any traces of the two that escaped to keep from looking at him. No matter what, I couldn't stomach watching him wipe the blood away. He ate that person, even if they did attack us. No one deserved to be eaten, alive or not.

My eyes narrowed in on a soft crunch in the grass where they had been. A footprint. Without having to think, I noticed they had taken off to the north, my tracking skills kicking into high gears as I calculated how fast they were moving and how long ago the attack was. One of them was badly injured from the looks of it. They were limping heavily on one leg. In my head, I couldn't help but wonder what had actually happened.

"Should we follow them?"

"_**No**_," Zetsu's gruff voice stated as he gingerly forced himself to his feet. He seemed to stagger under the weight of the Venus flytrap, wobbling uncharacteristically on his feet. "_The next time I meet the bastard I'm going to rip him apart_," the smooth voice growled, flinching slightly at the pain. "_**Those pests don't mean anything to us. Let someone else deal with them,**_" his other side argued.

_At least some things haven't changed, _I sighed, shaking my head at him. Pausing, I bit my lower lip hard in thought. Since when was I ok with the fact that Zetsu argued with himself? I thought long and hard, trying to analyze what exactly was going through my head. Had I really gotten so used to Zetsu that his weird quirks didn't bother me anymore?

I guess so.

_Hm._

Shaking myself out of my thoughts, I missed the calculating gaze peering intently at my face as I turned back to the situation at hand. It was just like Zetsu to be injured by these common thieves when he had beat me so easily the first time we fought. Then again, I was much stronger now, probably stronger than even Zetsu. If we fought, I could probably beat him easily. The only reason he had beaten me back during the fight with Katsu was that I gave him every opening he needed to take me out and chose not to fight back. Zetsu wasn't really the fighter of the Akatsuki anyway; he was the spy. Hidden. Creepy. Calculating.

No wonder they sent me to go with him. I was his fighting force while he got what he needed and if he did somehow manage to get hurt, I would be able to heal him. Maybe Pein had a reason to put us together… I'd never admit that to anyone else.

With a heavy sigh, I tried to discover a new way to survive without breathing, deciding that if I was going to heal Zetsu I might as well get it over with. From the looks of things, he was in some pain. Thought I tried to fight it, I couldn't help but be generally concerned as I walked over to him. Only because he protected me from those thieves, I told myself.

His wide golden eyes snapped to mine, hesitant, weary. I slowed a bit, suddenly concerned at alarming him—he _did _just devour a man in front of my face after all—and I carefully raised my arm to show him my intentions. He recoiled instantly, flinching again as he turned at the waist. Not that I could blame him. Last time I touched him I _did_ scramble his nerve network. There was no way I would be stupid enough to try that again after he figured out my trick so quickly. He must be a genius or something in that weird head of his to be able to come up with a way to move with a scrambled nervous system that quickly. Or I had been extremely stupid.

I flashed him a look before reaching out towards his side again. Again he leaned back just out of my grasp.

"Will you hold still!" I snapped, before sucking in a sickening breath of blood thick air. For a second I had to stop, turning green as I was overwhelmed with the sickening rush of the situation coming back to slap me in a face. By the time I recovered, enough he had shifted closer, his face nothing but curiosity and something else hidden in their depths. If I didn't know, better I would have almost said he was checking to see if I was okay.

His large golden eyes stared at me causing the familiar chills to run all over my skin. No matter how hard I tried, I could never shake off how his gaze made me feel. It took longer than normal for the flush in my stomach to settle and the deep chills to stop racing up and down my spine. I sighed when I felt I could control myself again. Carefully I stepped closer again.

"There's no reason to hurt you so relax. Without you, I can't even get back to the base," I reasoned. Carefully, I inched closer with every word. "It'll take forever to get back with you hurt. I'm just going to heal you." I took another step closer.

I'd forgotten how tall he was until I was just out of an arm's reach of him. Even if he was nowhere near as tall as Kisame, he was still almost a complete head taller than I was. His thin and broad frame was packed with muscles that made me feel tiny in comparison. I refocused, keeping my eyes locked firmly on his face as he hid behind the leaves of his Venus flytrap. He stared of me wearily, but didn't go to move when I finally stepped closer again. I wrinkled my nose at the heavy smell of blood floating around him. Ignoring it, I quickly walked behind him. He turned his head with me cautiously, attempting to keep me out of his blind spots, but eventually I was safely hidden behind one of the leaves of his Venus flytrap. He was making this too complicated for his own good. It wasn't as if I _wanted_ to heal him. This was just my responsibility. No more.

_Liar._

I mentally slapped myself. Now wasn't the time to have an argument with myself.

I hesitated for a second, reaching out. Why was it so hard for me to just reach out and touch him? It'd never bothered me before with anyone else. This shouldn't be so hard. What was wrong with me?

My fingers twitched forward. Before I could pull away, I forced my hand against his side. His skin was freezing to my touch. A spark leapt up my arm, directly to my gut the second our skin touched. Even he shifted slightly. Did that meant he felt it too? Whatever it was? I quickly shook off the feeling and inserted a small amount of chakra into his body.

"Shit," I mumbled under my breath.

"_What_?"

_Damn, this is not good._

With a sigh, I pulled my hand away, flexing my fingers slightly to get rid of the strange tingling in my palm. He turned to face me with a slightly worried look on the white half of his face. In any other situation, I would have laughed at how … adorable he was. For as second I could almost picture him as a little boy pouting up at his mother. The black half however, looked … bored.

"He hit you exactly between your external abdominal oblique and your erector spinae"—I quickly pointed to a single spot nearly two inches above the top of the hipbone off to the left side of the spine. A small, tender, delicate part of a person normally protected by the layers of muscle and tendons running over top of it—"and he severed the muscle. That's why it's hard for you to turn without pain. It's causing your oblique to overwork and support the weight of your … well, your Venus flytrap."

"_**You can heal that with chakra**_," the black half stated, amused at the fact I was floundering around for the right words. I blushed delicately.

Palming the back of my neck, I let out a sigh, fighting off my flush. "Of course I can," I defended, "but when he did it he also shifted your spine over by an inch or two and it's causing the curvature of your hips to be off and everything's out of line. If I don't fix your spine first then it would be useless for me to heal it because the strain would only cause the muscles to stretch out and cause more damage."

He frowned. "_Can you do it_?" his other half asked, more concerned.

"I don't really know. I've never realigned someone's back before," I mumbled slowly. I chewed on my lower lip thoughtfully as I tried to come up with a way to work around him. Realigning someone's back wouldn't normally be much of a problem, but I wasn't exactly sure of his anatomy considering he had a plant that grew out of his body.

An idea came to mind, but I wasn't too happy about it. If only he didn't have the plant growing out of him… _Damn my mind and crazy solutions._ I looked back up at him. "That can come off, right?" I pointed at his Venus flytrap.

On cue, it closed slightly around his head, probably knowing of the threat against him. I shivered. No matter what I would _never_ get used to that.

He nodded, giving me an appraising look. Seemingly satisfied I wasn't asking himself to maim himself he closed his eyes. "_Step back_," he warned.

As I stepped back his hands disappeared in his sleeves, reappearing again as he unbuttoned his cloak from the inside. The burning flush twisted in my stomach, heat pooling in my cheeks as I stared blatantly at him undressing. I knew I should look away. Was he really undressing though? No. I should give him privacy either way. What would I think if he were to stare at me if I was taking off—

_No, bad thought. Don't go there._

My brain died after the third button unsnapped, the top of his bare chest showing from inside his cloak, the snow-white skin contrasted deliciously against the coal black of his other half. The burning prickle at the back of my ears told me he discovered my burning gaze, but if only made my knees tremble in the best of ways. I couldn't pull my gaze away. His hands paused, his black and white fingers stopping at a button in the middle of his cloak and for a second my eyes flickered up to his gaze. I gasped, seeing something animal, something primal in his gaze I hadn't seen before. It was enough to snap me out of my haze.

What the hell was I doing? Staring at him like that! Snapping my eyes shut, I turned, gripping my own cloak to keep my hands from shaking. That was wrong. What was I thinking? He was the enemy and I was standing there checking him out. It didn't matter if he was strong, or interesting, or willingly undressing in front of me. No! It didn't matter.

I had to bite back a gasp as the sound of his hands deftly undoing the rest of the snaps on his cloak and it fell to the ground. Cautiously I reopened my eyes, determined to keep my gaze strictly professional. Only after I thought I could control myself did I turn back around.

My eyes never made it to his face as once again I was captured by his completely bare chest in front of me. The Venus flytrap extended all the way down his torso, engulfing his upper body nearly completely, his arms seeming to have merged through them in order for him to wear a normal cloak. He brought both his hands up, grasping each side of the Venus flytrap. After his gaze flickered to me he took a deep breathe, closed his eyes, and with a sudden jerk, ripped the plant in half. I cringed as sickening snaps and cracks erupted through the air. It sounded like branches and bones snapping and skin tearing. I could barely stand to watch as he tore every trace of the plant from his body. Where it had dug into his skin, small holes quickly filled again, morphing around to keep him whole and seemingly unharmed.

Underneath it showed that the fine line separating his black and white half continued down his body until it reached his hip, the fine muscles of his chest and abs toned through years of hard work. Muscles I would get to feel, trace….

_No. Stop thinking Amaya. Stop it._

"A-Are you okay?" I called hesitantly, my throat painfully dry.

He dropped the remains of his Venus flytrap unceremoniously on the ground. The second it touched the grass it merged, sinking and growing into the earth as if it had been there all along. Then as if by magic, the starts of flowers seemed to sprout up on their own. They grew, twisted, and bloomed until a small patch of deep blue dragon snaps grew in its place.

_That was where they came from at the water basin…_ I stared up at him in a mixed amazement.

Opening his eyes, he looked at me strangely. He too looked down at where the monstrosity that used to grow on his head used to be, unaffected by the splendor in front of him. _"It'll grow back_," he stated.

I didn't know where to look as he turned back to me, waiting for further instruction. After earlier, I didn't trust myself to _look _at him. A single glance could send my mind spiraling back into forbidden territory. I'd never been that girl before, never letting myself get distracted, and I wasn't about to start now. Seeing him relatively human made me fidget. It wasn't right.

Shaking my head, I spun around, stalking off into the woods to gather my bearings. On a second though, I glanced back; Zetsu had quickly covered the distance I had moved, fully prepared for me to run off. "I have to find something to make you relax. It won't take long," I called, praying it would be long enough to let me get my head on my shoulders. When his face clouded over in the telltale signs of him internally battling with himself, I continued as sincere as I could. "I'll be back. I promise."

My stomach twisted awkwardly under his keen gaze, but thankfully, he stopped chasing after me, his eyes burning into mine in the promise to hold me to my word. Quickly I scurried out of the clearing, deeper into the forest for something I could use, any plant. I wondered around aimlessly for a couple of seconds, letting my mind clear on its own until I finally found a white willow tree. With a gratefully sigh I pulled off some bark, grabbing a couple other herbs on the way back to make it easier to eat.

By the time I came back, I found him sitting blankly under a tree, his eyes closed in meditation. I paused, hesitant to disturb him. He seemed so much more human without his Venus flytrap, sitting on the ground like that. Maybe he would have been able to have a normal life in a village somewhere, somewhere used to his weird multicolored skin. Too bad that could never be. He was just as much a prisoner in the Akatsuki as I was. No one would ever accept him after he chose to be with them.

Shoving off the thought, I revealed myself, stepping out into the opening with a forced smile. His eyes flickered open in my direction, but he didn't move a single muscle. A small bowl and pistol formed from the deep rocks of the earth as I moved closer to him with the help of a little chakra. Bending down I grabbed them, placing in the white willow bark in with a few other herbs I grabbed before grounding them up a bit. When I was satisfied with the slightly ground up mixture, I handed him the bowl, motioning for him to stand up and come over to me. Awkwardly, he managed to make it to his feet, gimping over to me and taking the bowl

He studied it closely._ "__**White willow bark?**__ You want me to eat bark?"_

I laughed, unable to hold in my grin. His golden eyes widened comically, snapping up to my face and making me laugh harder. "It's a good natural painkiller. It'll help you relax so I can realign everything easier. Just chew on a little bit of that for a second and lie down on your stomach for me."

With one last blank look, he complied, lowering himself slowly onto the ground face down. Despite my desire to keep this as professional as possible, I couldn't help but blush. Forcing myself to look away, I promised myself this was the only way I could safely heal him—even though it probably wasn't. I stared for a moment longer, observing at the strange curves of his muscles rippling down his bare back. Without a single ounce of fat to be scene, I could clearly see where I needed to realign everything. The soft indent of his spine shot off to the right a couple inches above his waistline in an unnatural "L" shape.

I wet my lips, hesitantly stepping one leg on the other side of his waist. Immediately he jerked, awkwardly turning his head up to me, those wide calculating eyes staring into my very soul. Even thinking about how close we were going to be brought color rushing to my cheeks. "Don't move," I warned. "This is going to hurt a bit. Keep chewing that until I'm completely done, ok?"

He nodded once before turning away again. I took that as my cue.

Taking a deep breath, I straddled his hips to keep him in place. We locked eyes for a moment again, his eyes full of emotions I couldn't read. I blushed deep feeling exactly where he rubbed as his body fidgeted awkwardly under me, unable to hide the strange excitement and tremble it gave my heart. I waited a moment until he stopped shifting under me. Then another to calm my erratic breathing. Clear my head. Match his body's natural movements as he breathed deep and low. Deep and smooth.

Carefully, I place my hands over his back. Again, his skin was cold to the touch, so cold I almost wondered if it had something to do with his anatomy, but now wasn't the time to ask. Shivering slightly, I felt him shift again, his back trembling lightly under my fingers. I rather liked the feeling.

_Stop it._

Frowning I forced myself to focus.

"Now I need you to try and relax your entire back."

Inserting some soothing chakra, I felt him close his eyes and slowly start to ease the tension in his muscles. Just to help along, I smoothed my hand gently up and down his back and large firm motions, careful not to agitate any damage area. Every now and then, his muscles would twitch causing me to jump, but my massage seemed to be easing the tension right out of him. Carefully I switched to smaller and smaller movements, centralizing my hands where I would need to realign everything.

"That's it. Just relax."

He let out a deep breath, barely even chewing on the bark anymore. Slowly, I spread my hands apart, one on each side of his spine where it was out of line, still making small soft brushing motions across his muscles. Then, with a deep breath, I forced my palms down causing him to cry out. Instantly he tensed, his entire body going rigid under me, his hips bucking up to throw me off.

"Relax Zetsu," I said clenching my teeth as I forced more chakra into him to calm him down. It worked for a moment, his body still trying to fight it off. "I need you to relax now damn it or it's not going to work!"

With a breath, his body fell limp under me. Not wasting the moment, I quickly shoved everything back in place. I could feel him fighting the urge to throw me off, tensing every now and then, muscles twitching and flexing under my fingertips. My hands traveled smoothly up and down his lower back, fixing everything. So many things out of place. So many things to shift and correct. Finally, I let out a triumphant sigh, moving my hands lightly over his back and feeling nothing out of place.

I did it. I realigned his back.

I smiled softly, feeling the definitions of each muscle under my fingertips and the rough strong skin against my own. It gave me a delicious chill all the way to the base of my spine. If only I could feel more of it… I trailed my fingers up his sides, in my head reasoning with myself by saying I was checking to make sure everything healed, but I couldn't even convince myself. His body was addicting. Without even realizing it, I trailed my fingertip along his spine, smiling at the way he twisted under me, his hips coincidentally twisting into mine. The strange little fact sent my mind reeling over the edge. I pressed my hips down into his, my eyes fluttered shut before I realized what I'd just done.

I felt his eyes on me. Gulping subconsciously, I looked down at him. What I saw sent tendrils racing up and down my skin in strange sensations. He's face was shocked, his eyes wide in a way that made me shift. The primal glaze was back in his eyes, his pupils dilated.

"A-Almost done," I sputtered out, quickly turning back with a deep blush burning my cheeks. I inserted more chakra, this time mending his torn muscles.

The second I finished, I quickly stood letting him roll over and sit up again. _Oh god, did I really…?_ I groaned, closing my eyes and biting my lip in frustration. Something pressed against me for a split second, and I opened my eyes in confusion only to see Zetsu's golden eyes directly in front of me. His eyes heavy. Head tilted. Coming closer, almost as if I could feel him right against me.

Then with a flash, he was gone. I blinked, incredulously seeing him midway through rebuttoning his cloak a good ten feet away. _What the hell was that?_ I mused, shaking my head. Through my shaky breaths, I forced my hammering heart to slow._ I could have sworn …_ No; no one could move that fast except Tobi. I had to be imagining things, high on whatever it was in my system.

When I looked over at Zetsu again, I half expected to see the Venus flytrap back on his shoulder with the same cruel, hard gaze. For some reason that was how I always pictured him. Mean. Violent. Despicable. Instead, he was the same. The same open piercing look that made my stomach flip in anticipation. Anticipation for _what _I didn't know. Our gazes locked for a moment as he stared at me.

"Does it feel better?" I asked quietly, fiddling with the hem of my shirt. My roaring blush finally seemed to have faded away.

He stared at me a moment longer. I noticed the muscles in his arms jumping, almost as if he was torn between reaching out and holding still, but eventually it seemed holding still won the metal battle he was having. With a curt nod, he turned his back towards me and started walking in the direction I presumed home was in, if I could ever call that place my home.

I frowned, mentally chiding myself for what I did. Gosh, I was acting like a hormonal teenager. Who knows what he was probably thinking now. It wasn't as if it meant anything to me, right?

Suddenly he stopped, glancing back at me, his eyes still holding that strange look that sent chills racing across my skin.

Shifting slightly he murmured, "_Thank you_."

Eyes widening, I hesitated utterly shocked. A warm smile broke across my face. "You're welcome." And I meant it.


	14. Beginning Of Self Doubt

**AN:** Sorry for the long wait again. Hopefully this nice long chapter will make up for it! Updates will be coming a lot faster because school's finally over! Yaaaaaay! It's so exciting. Graduation.

Eh, anyways. There's some more delicious sexual tension between Amaya and Zetsu in this chapter will the promise of some more action coming up. My stories can never go too long without a fight or some sort of exciting moment to write about. I'm not really one for simple romances and angst. I like to shake it up a little bit! This chapter will also give you a sense of time in the Naruto world as I'm starting to tie everything in together.

Is it bad that I've typed up Zetsu's name so many times, my fingers are actually going to fast and typing Zestu instead? Lol, I thought it was funny when I realized it. So if you see it let me know and I'll fix it up right away. It wouldn't surprise me at all if I randomly start screwing up little things like that now :)

I'm also thinking about starting a One Piece fanfiction about Zolo/Zoro. Any of you guys read/watch One Piece? If so does it sound like an interesting idea? I wrote a one shot between Zolo/Zoro and my character that I would be using just as something to keep my mind fresh to write this and I was super shocked at the response I got to it. Anyways, just let me know ;) Maybe I'll double up!

Thanks so much for the reviews and comments guys!

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><p><strong>Chapter Fourteen<strong>

**Beginning Of Self Doubt**

Sunlight beamed down between the lush green canopy overhead, casting tinted shadows across my skin as I walked. The air was light and warm, not quite stuffy and suffocating from the midday heat. To counter the growing wave of heat a gentle breeze picked up high up in the tress, causing faint crinkles and rustles as the leaves brushed against each other and blew a wave of cool air down towards us.

Zetsu had once again taken the lead as usual, walking a few paces in front of me as I trailed habitually in one of his usual blind spots. Now of course, with his Venus flytrap still missing I found myself catching his golden eyes every few steps as he peeked over his shoulder, not suspicious, not cruelly, but rather curiously, as if he was remembering this moment. My heart warmed slightly at the thought. That Zetsu might want to remember me…

I glanced away, taking in my surroundings for the hundredth time since we had continued on our journey, trying to distract myself from the torrent of emotions and questions that were swimming around in my head. Not even the soothing sounds of the forest life could distract me though.

I felt like I should say something since I was seeing such a rare side of Zetsu. How many people saw the vulnerable, tender side of Zetsu, the cannibal of the ninja world's most dangerous and deadly organization? However, I was so shocked I couldn't quite think of anything to talk about. What could I say to a man—plant?—thing?—that I practically just came on to when I was supposed to be thinking medically? I couldn't think of anyone who wouldn't be tongue tied in this situation.

It brought up many problems.

One: I shouldn't be feeling awkward at all around someone I was going to have to kill—and I would have to kill him. It would be the only way to get away from the Akatsuki, considering Pein decided I was going to be paired with Zetsu. If Pein thought that Zetsu could be the scout and informant while I could be the healer and muscle behind him, he was going to be sorely mistaken. If I couldn't kill Zetsu to get away and reclaim my freedom, that alone there would bring various issues.

Two: I couldn't get the strange feeling out of my head. When I thought about it, I didn't know what I felt. It made me uncomfortable. Something didn't feel right; as if I was listening to someone tell me a picture should hang upside down inside of right side up. After seeing him and _feeling_ him, everything was off. He was beautiful. There was nothing else to say. Seeing him to defenseless and vulnerable changed everything.

I should have killed him back there, used my scrolls to find Katsu and made a run for it as I was originally planning. It would have been easy. He was hurt. But, once again, I didn't. The thought didn't even cross my mind until I was already so far lost in his eyes that I was practically useless myself. This made it harder to think about him as the killer, the _monster_ who was ruining my life and everything in it.

Three: It wasn't natural. That's the only thing that seemed to make any sense in my confusing mind at the moment. I wasn't sure what I was feeling or what was going on there but I knew it wasn't right.

Okay, that was a lie.

I knew what I felt. Back there, that was basic attraction; something I shouldn't feel for Zetsu in _any_ way. I just didn't know _why_ I was feeling it. Maybe it was his muscles moving underneath me in some of the most intimate ways, feeling him push and curl around me, reacting in ways only lovers should—now that was a problem. Maybe it was that way he looked at me almost like … like—ah, I couldn't even describe it. So open and exposed, as if he was almost sucking me into him, drawing me further into the depths of his eyes… It was so much more than that though, something I didn't even know that made my body hum and my mind mush. Maybe I'd just been around him for too long. Whatever it was, it was _wrong._

"Hey Zetsu," I called. My voice was slightly hoarse, huskier than normal and I quickly cleared my throat to rid myself of my twisted thoughts. His ear twitched backwards as he glanced back with curious eyes. For some reason I couldn't help but smile.

I scowled, mentally berating myself. This was so messed up. I wasn't even acting like me anymore!

Fully aware of my emotions playing across my face, I muttered, "What is the mission? You never told me."

"_**I already completed our mission when you were asleep**__."_

"What?" I gasped, stopping. All of the sudden the blazing sun seemed to beat down with the intensity of a thousand suns, knocking my knees and pinching against my chest. In slow motion, my mind went back to the man he had been eating, back to the blood and horror trapped on his face. A chill ran up my spine. _Had he been the mission? Kill some man?_

I didn't want to know.

All of the sudden I was all too aware of him continuing to walk, not seeing anything wrong with what he had just said. Shakily I muttered, "Oh."

He turned his head around, taking advantage of not having the Venus flytrap growing back yet. It was odd, how comfortable he seemed without it, moving as any other person would. I couldn't help but wonder if he removed his Venus flytrap often; he seemed far too used to being without it not to.

If that was the mission, then…

"Then what are we doing now?"

"_**You ask too many questions**_," his black half groaned. I was about to retort when the white half spoke in his sinfully smooth voice. "_We are headed towards a secure location._"

_Well that tells me nothing,_ I grumbled mentally. It seems like the wonderful half of his _charming_ personality was back.

The silence was repressing as we continued all through the countless trees without a single word. Without knowing which direction exactly we were heading I kept a faint eye on Zetsu, staring off boredly at everything around me. Here the trees had grown tall, taller than nearly I had seen anywhere else. We were most likely in the Fire Nation still by the looks of them; trees didn't grow like this anywhere else. The weather seemed to match it. Few places had the luxury of cool mornings, lush greenery, and blazing days like the Fire Nation. I amused myself by trying to name all of the things around us, picking out what medical plants I could while naming what other things I could. It only took nearly an hour before I was completely bored and itching to do something.

Zetsu still walked, not showing a single sign of stopping.

"Can you tell me about the Akatsuki?" The words blurted from my mouth before I could register what I was saying or that I was even speaking. He glanced back making a cold sweat break out on the back of my neck and I blushed heavily. My chest tightened uncomfortably.

He stopped, turning hallway to look me full in the face, his expression completely masked. I fidgeted under his heavy gaze, stopping a safe distance away from him. Slowly, his white voice asked, "_Are you saying though you had the ability to learn everything about anything you wanted with that scroll"_—he gestured to my necklace—"_you didn't even look up information on the people holding you captive_?"

I opened my mouth to retort, but found I didn't have anything to say. Now I couldn't help but feel foolish. Wow. How could I have not even thought of that? Was I so wrapped up with saving Katsu that I didn't even think to look up everything I could about the organization itself?

There was silence for a moment as he shook his head, his body starting to hum and tremble. I cringed, flinching in preparation as his body full on started to shake. I drew back ready for him to snap at me, maybe for a slap for being completely stupid. Then all of the sudden, he exploded.

Booming laughter erupted, spooking nearby birds and filling the forest in a rich deep rumble nearly knocking me to my feet. Caught off guard, I stared, unable to place the low husky laughter to the bi-colored man, head tossed towards the sky with a beaming smile revealing his long smooth teeth in front of me. I paused, staring dumbfounded at Zetsu.

I didn't even know he could laugh….

For some time he just laughed, his spine stretching and bending as he let his laughter wash over him. Something about the sound of his laughter, the richness, hard but sensual, easy, carefree, made me break out in a grin. Something warm spread in my stomach. Soon I couldn't help but chuckle myself at my own stupidity. The way the light seemed to hit him, fanning around him sensually as his deep rumbling laugh took over his entire body sent a jolt all the way down to my toes and back. He was so beautiful…

Then the moment was shattered. He suddenly seemed to regain his ability to speak and in one choked out breath, his dark gruff voice barked out, "_**You're such an idiot Amaya**_!"

I shivered as he said my name. Despite the insult, I couldn't help but notice how my body reacted to it. Toes curling, spine shuttering and my eyes fluttering closed for the barest of moments. I must still not be thinking straight from the incident from earlier. That was the only way I could ever feel like this. It had to be. Either way … I rather liked him saying my name.

Just then, my ego caught up with my wondering thoughts and a blinding rage blocked all thoughts in my head. An idiot? Me? The burning flush of being reprimanded and embarrassed in front of someone blurred my thoughts enough for me to snap. An idiot! He was calling me an idiot for not being stupid and trying to look up things I would be punished for knowing? Was he just looking for an excuse to beat me?

My smile fell from my face and I shifted, crossing my arms defensively as I glared out at the trees. I cringed back snarling at him, holding onto my rage with everything I had. Whatever the hell he was thinking I didn't like. Making me think things I shouldn't, feel things I couldn't describe, and doubt everything I thought I knew. Didn't he already know he was screwing up my life?

Irritably I snapped, "It didn't really cross my mind at the time seeing how I was too busy planning on how to _kill_ you and get away. Be thankful you're even alive right now. I'm starting to have wished I killed you!"

His laughter died down into a small chuckle, his eyes coming down to clash against my fiery gaze the second I glanced back to see how he took my own insult. It only infuriated me further that he didn't seem to be bothered by it. That look he was wearing made my skin itch.

Despite the venom in my words, he didn't seem too concerned with my temper, even as the leaves high up in the trees started to shake. Without his Venus flytrap, it was harder to picture him as a monster, but I was damn well trying now. Still chuckling, he stared mused, asking with a genuine curiosity that stabbed a knife into my ego. "_Why didn't you kill me_?"

I froze, my anger instantly evaporating. I frowned, clenching my fists and staring hard at the ground, wishing it could suck me up now. The slightly beaten path never looked more interesting to me before.

Why _didn't_ I kill him?

I ground my teeth, closing my eyes in shame. If only I could have, Katsu and I could be out here together, running for our freedom, making our own choices and living our lives our way. We could be free. I sighed. The word sounded so sweet in my head, richer than honey and fresher than feeling a cool breeze on a hot day.

Then the memory of his face, his golden eyes staring up at me, full of pain and something else hit me. Panic. Anger. He was shaking, trembling as he had stared up at me, unable to hide the terror of not being able to help himself, to save himself. He stared at me with an acceptance of what was to come. Hopelessness, as if he knew exactly what I was going to do. That I was going to kill him. It broke me. I trembled, staring straight into his wide golden eyes. It's just … if only I could have … All it would have taken was one hit. One hit and it would be over. One hit and Katsu and I could be free again, back to our old life.

Why couldn't I do it?

"I don't know why I couldn't kill you," I whispered finally.

"_**Couldn't**_?"

_Shit._ I cringed realizing my faux pas. Gulping, I bit my lip, my eyes screwed tightly shut to avoid any chance of having to look at him. To have to see those captivating golden eyes. I turned my back to him, rubbing my arm as I tried to think of how I could get out of this, how to catch myself from saying something that would ruin me in the end.

Finally, I turned back, unable to stop myself from catching his gaze. His eyes were wide, calculating, but there was something more, a burning curiosity. I could see it all right there. My will to lie, died seeing those golden eyes.

Slowly I let the words tumble out of my mouth, as unsure what I was saying, as I was if it was the truth. "I-I couldn't. I couldn't make myself kill someone who couldn't defend themselves. It … It was just wrong. You were immobilized. Killing you would be like butchering someone." Weakly, I tore my gaze away, unable to watch as his body language shifted, taking in my words. More to myself, I whispered, "I couldn't make myself do it."

For a long time it was silent, only the birds chirping off in the distance. I closed my eyes focusing on the sun beating down on me, sucking in its warmth in hopes something would happen. I was too aware of his gaze cutting into me. The stripping cool gaze of his intoxicating golden eyes. Sizing me up for everything I was.

Right now, I really needed him to say something. Anything. Yet, at the same time, I didn't want him to. I didn't want to have to face what he saw in me. I didn't want to be hurt.

He shifted. I didn't look up but I could almost feel him stare up at the trees. The rustle of his cloak was faint but it was there. Whatever he was thinking about I couldn't guess.

"_**You're weak**_."

Gasping for breath my head shot up, my eyes wide. Then as if on another note my mouth clamped closed and I closed my eyes for a moment. He was right. I had my chance and I blew it. If not for that one hesitation, Katsu and I could already be in hiding, happily surviving together. Free. What type of ninja couldn't kill? I was weak.

Shaking my head, I walked forward, passing him without a glance. I was careful not to brush against him. Hot tears of my bruised ego and damage pride welled behind my eyes but I would never let them show. Reality hurt. The last thing I would do was cry in front of him for stating the facts. I wasn't some weak little girl. I kept walking in the same direction we were headed earlier, keeping my head high.

A hand fell heavy on my shoulder. I jerked, my head snapping around to meet his endless gaze as the soft green tint of the sunlight playing through the leaves dancing across his bi-colored skin. Nearly ripping myself out of his grasp, I spun around, my chakra crackling emotionally in a way that was sad to admit. Instead of letting me go like I had expected, his white hand tightened his grip, keeping me just close enough to feel the shadow of his tall lean form against my face and the cool chill of his skin seeping through my cloak.

His voice was smooth and clear. "_**Anyone else would have killed me without a second thought**__,"_ his dark half began. To my surprise, his tone was shockingly light, softening the blow his words brought. His white half took over,_ "The fact that you didn't makes you different then us. __**Weak, maybe**__. But stronger at the same time."_

I looked back, the tears swelling up behind my eyes threatening to burst forth. Eagerly I searched his gaze, looking for any sign what he just said to me wasn't sincere. His eyes were soft, open and willing for my search for the first time. There was hardly a foot between us.

I smiled despite myself, looking up at his face as I realized he wasn't playing some game. Then all of the sudden, the weight of his hand on my shoulder felt so much heavier. His eyes glanced over my face, trailing over my features. A strange churning in my stomach made my knees shutter under his gaze, and I couldn't stop my eyes from flickering down to his lips. Parted, full.

He stepped back, his hand falling off my shoulder just as I realized I was starting to lean forward into him. Though his eyes never left my face, his body turned away. My cheeks caught on fire as the realization of what I was about to do branded itself in my mind. I could feel my blush all the way down in my chest where my heart was beating sporadically, heavier than it should be. I turned away from him quickly, unable to stand his gaze as embarrassment and denial rushed over me.

Zetsu's chakra flared for a moment. I looked over just as a small puff of smoke filled the clearing between us. Once it began to fade away, I realized he had once again replaced his Venus flytrap on his shoulders, blocking me from view.

My humiliation burned me to the core. Was I expecting him to move towards me as well, to be caught up in the moment as I was? No, that was a silly wish, one that would only kill me in the end. Still, the knowledge didn't lessen the pain any.

"_**We need to keep moving,**_" Zetsu announced, easily picking up his pace again.

I followed numbly, unable to make myself even glance up enough to see his back. This time, neither of us dared to look at each other.

After what felt like an eternity, Zetsu stopped in front of a large cave, sealed off by one giant stone. It was located down in a river bank with several trees jutting out between the two rock banks as temporary bridges even though the water was barely high enough to come up to my ankle. It was majestic in its own way. Nothing I hadn't seen before.

He didn't say a word as he stopped, staring up at the seal on the large bolder. I recognized it quickly as a five point barrier seal, one that needed at least five people to open, the other identical versions of the seal located elsewhere in the surrounding area. Ninja's only used five point barrier seals when they were doing something very vital and secret. When most ninja squads only traveled in groups of four, three underlings and one superior, a five barrier seal would cause a real problem. Five point barriers would ensure safety until another team could arrive. It was strange for someone to go through such precautions to guard one single place. I couldn't even imagine what the Akatsuki was planning on doing.

Facing my humiliation, I turned towards Zetsu waiting for future instruction but he studied the area carefully as if waiting on something. Judging by the look on his face, I could tell that this place was important. I added a mental picture to my memory along with how we had gotten here. Any place that held enough importance to Zetsu and the Akatsuki might be important in the future.

"Zetsu?" I called hesitantly.

As if suddenly remembering me, his head perked up slightly. Without turning, he answered. "_**We need to secure this area. This location is pertinent for the next three days and Leader feels we might be interrupted. I want you to go to 300 clicks north and report any movement to me**__._"

"How do you want me to contact you?"

Turning he held out a small short-wave radio. I laughed slightly at the thought of using a radio again. It had been a very long time since I'd had to use one of those blasted things, not since I graduated the ninja academy and had to start running from the Seekers. I never did really like them. "Lovely," I muttered too quiet for him to hear.

"_Only contact me when you see someone. I don't want to know what else you do_," the smooth voice warned with a light edge that made me smirk. Whatever he might have been thinking I would want to talk to him about I didn't have a single clue. Did he think I was one of those girls that had to talk about the most miniscule things that happened? Either way the thought was amusing.

Shaking away my strange thoughts I reached out, jumping slightly as our fingers brushed together and a shock zapped up my arm. Zetsu's blank mask was impenetrable so I shook the thought off to static electricity. I quickly shoved aside the strange feeling. "Right," I mumbled strapping the small band around my neck with experienced fingers and quickly put in the earpiece. I off-handedly checked the volume before tapping the mike on the base of my throat. It gave off a soft tap in response. "What type of inference am I looking for exactly?" I asked vaguely as I tinkered with my radio.

"_**Ninja**_."

_That's very specific,_ I grumbled silently but I didn't bother protesting with him. Knowing Zetsu as little as I did, I still knew he wouldn't tell me anything he didn't have to. I was more likely to figure it out myself than I was to get anything from him. Not wasting a second I quickly kicked chakra to my feet, launching off into the trees, more than happy to leave the awkward tension between us.

The wind brushed by me as I shot through the forest. My chakra shifted excitedly as I allowed it to fill my body to the brim, letting all of my confusion and thoughts melt away into pure feeling. I had missed this, flying through the trees without a care in the world. It had been too long since I was allowed to run in the open, feel the wind whipping through my hair, and taste the sweet nectar of flowers and plants that floated freely in the air. To run without having to worry about who was following. To move without having to worry who was watching. I closed my eyes, feeling the ground under my feet and the leaves rustling in the air. Oh gosh, I felt free.

I came to a halt exactly 300 clocks north. The area wouldn't seem any different from the regular forest to anyone else, but I had been among trees enough to see the subtle changes. The earth here was softer with more grass and smaller trees. All of the leaves on the trees were different. Instead of the oak trees, these were maple. Not much of a difference, but if I was right I must have moved a bit closer towards a warmer region. I took note of all of my surroundings before settling silently up in a tree and hiding my chakra. Up here, I could see the entire surrounding while hiding from everything.

Therefore, I waited.

After half an hour, my attention span started to dwindle. I found myself looking more and more over at Sarnik. This was starting to feel stupid sitting here and waiting for "ninjas" to come. I had denied myself the luxury of standing and stretching my cramping legs in the small change someone might see me, but now my legs were burning. It was getting harder and harder to hold still.

This wasn't even a life-threatening mission.

Heck, I didn't even really know what I was looking for.

Just as I flicked open the seal on Sarnik my ears perked to the soft flapping of wings. Curiously, I looked up, peaking between the branches to see a giant white bird flying overhead. It was huge. A sense of déjà vu hit me hard.

_A lone white bird flew up ahead, circling over top of the Sayan Mountains in a lazy pattern. I stared up, unnerved by the strange sight. I couldn't remember ever seeing a white bird before. Especially not up to high as this. Just as I was about to get a closer look, the bird turned, flying up higher in the sky, disappearing in the clouds._

I gasped, the memory hitting me full force. I'd seen that bird before the day Zetsu first took Katsu and me on top of the Sayan Mountains. It had been flying around in circles up there too. Now in an area like this, miles away, it was here?

My eyes widened as I saw one leg protruding from its mouth. "What in the world?" I gasped, memorizing the image in my head.

Placing a hand against the cool crystal of my necklace, I called out Sarnik, opening and accessing my chakra in one smooth movement.

"_Eih mitsu-torae."_

Instantly ink burst out onto the blank scroll filling it with a vivid image of the bird from an upper view. A blonde with a high ponytail stood on top wearing the same pitch-black cloak marked with the white outlined red swirling clouds. The person inside the bird's mouth could hardly be seen. Clicking the small button on the side of my neck I quickly entered the radio channel. "One man Akatsuki approaching forty-five miles per hour on bird. Person in the mouth of the bird," I explained quickly, not sure if this was what I was to looking for.

I turned back around in time to spot a lone figure coming over the horizon. Changing the picture in my head I watched as the ink melted into the figure showing me a moving picture of it coming closer. "Another Akatsuki with a tail coming twenty-five miles per hour."

"_**Very good**__,_" came Zetsu's reply, his voice crackling with faint static.

"Stay in position?" I questioned bored. In my mind I was really hoping his answer would be no, but I had a nagging feeling I was going to be stuck here for a while.

"_**Yes**__._"

"How long would you like me to stay in position?"

"_**Three days**__._"

* * *

><p><em>Stupid three days my ass,<em> I grumbled, jumping from tree to tree. My feet moved on their own, turning and guiding me from branch to branch careful to keep me in the designated area I was assigned to watch. _It's already been two without a single sign of life besides two freaking travelers as blind as bats! What the hell are they doing?_

I continued to grumble as I finally stopped and sat down on one of the endless mile high trees and stared out at the forest. In front of me, the scene was rather inspiring, the sun rising gently over the treetops, casting a soft warm light over the valley of trees and catching on the rippling water of the gurgling down the riverbeds.

Just when I felt like I was starting to figure out what was going on and what I would need to do in order to protect Katsu they all run and hide in a stupid cave and leave me on watch. Frowning I pulled out Sarnik and ran my hand over it, gently breaking the seal again and opening it. After the first day, I hadn't bothered with returning it back into the crystal each time, knowing it was my only source of entertainment in the long hours of the day. Every day without fail I'd check and see if there were any of these so called "ninja" after the Akatsuki and then I'd go running around further in the woods, careful to never go too far as to break my radio connection with Zetsu. It was bad enough to be left out here while they were in their top-secret cave doing who knows what. All of this was starting to tick me off to no end.

Hat in the world could they be doing in there that would take three days? What was up with the person in the bird's mouth? Assuming there was more to the person than just the leg of course. I'd never heard of anything in the ninja world that took three days and a five-point barrier to do. If only I could just see what they were doing. My curiosity and boredom was killing me.

"_Eih mitsu-torae_," I whispered glancing down at the scroll.

Diligently, I pictured everything in the surrounding area, focusing on seeing if there were any ninja's nearby. While I'd never actually used Sarnik to see things I didn't actually see before, I figured if there were ever someone out there in the woods there would be a blank spot or maybe a little tab that said unknown I could report.

I was vaguely surprised when thick black lines of ink spread across the paper showing four different figures: one boy, a girl, an old woman, and their sensei. They were running through the woods. I couldn't make out any of their features since the map was only focusing on the path they were travelling by, but to my horror and excitement, I noticed they were heading straight towards the cave at the center of the valley.

Ninja's really were coming after them then. Whatever they had to be doing in that cave must be really dangerous and illegal for people to come after them so quickly. Maybe the villages had finally heard about the Akatsuki and were trying to get rid of them.

Instantly I reached up to inform Zetsu but I hesitated before pushing in the button on my neck. On second thought, I zoomed in, closing into the ninja to see if I could recognize them or get any more information on them. To my amazement, I was able to zoom in to the point I could easily make out each of their features in turn.

The old woman caught my eye first. Sarnik immediately began listing a tab of all of the information about her and where she was born. Sunagakure. Lady Chiyo. _Hm, it rings a faint bell_, I thought with a frown. That couldn't be good. If I had heard of her then she must have been strong.

I turned my attention to the other three. All three were from Konahagakure. Hatake Kakashi. Haruno Sakura. Uzumaki Naruto. I knew Kakashi from rumors and reputation but the other two were a mystery to me, most likely his students.

I moved again to push the button now that I had more information. My fingers stopped short as a thought came to my head.

If I let these ninja's find the Akatsuki then I might be able to go free. I hesitated licking my lips for a moment. That brief glimpse of freedom I had when I was escaping with Katsu tasted so good. I couldn't image actually having it. Not after all of the weeks and months I had been imprisoned by these people and no one finding me. Yet still I had to reason with the chance these ninja might not realize I stood apart from the Akatsuki. Katsu and I may be treated like one of them. The thought alone was enough to make me sick. For now, I guess it would be better to cooperate.

Finally, I pushed down on the button.

"Four targets approaching from the northeast travelling thirty miles per hour. Lady Chiyo, Hatake Kakashi, Haruno Sakura, and Uzumaki Naruto." I zoomed back out, calculating how long Zetsu would have until they reached the cave, but one detail that popped up on Sarnik made me stop in my tracks. The Uzumaki boy's father, the Yellow Flash of Konoha, he was said to have sealed the Nine-Tailed Demon within his son by rumor. Before I could think of the consequences, I stated, "Uzumaki is a jinjurican."

I didn't have to wait long before his hard deep voice came over the radio causing goosebumps to break out over my skin. My stomach twisted uncomfortably. "_**How far**__?_"

"500 clicks north. About twelve minutes until contact."

The radio crackled for a second as I waited impatiently for him to respond. My body itched to go out and confront the ninja, why I wasn't sure. If it was to do something or simply to fight again, I couldn't really decide.

There was no response. Scoffing to myself, I grumbled under my breath about the wonderful manners Zetsu had while I looked back down at Sarnik. Much to my dismay, four more ninja were now showed on the map: two boys, a girl, and their sensei. That would mean there would be enough ninja to be able to break the five-point barrier that protected Zetsu inside.

Err—I stopped that thought, acknowledging how dangerous that could be for me. It wasn't as if I was actually concerned. I couldn't be.

"Four more approaching from the southwest at twenty-five miles per hour nearly 750 clicks from rendezvous point, all Konoha ninja. Might Guy. Hyuuga Neji. Rock Lee. Tenten."

"_**Affirmativ**__e._"

I waited a moment, unsure on whether or not to ask, but finally my curiosity got the best of me. "Do you want me to interfere?"

There was a pause before both voice answered simultaneously. The mix of sounds wreaked havoc on my body. "_**No**__._"

I glared, disappointed at the prospect of doing nothing. Again, I was left in the silence, waiting for something to happen. All of this waiting and watching was killing me. It felt like my body was going to explode from excess energy. I didn't see how Zetsu was able to do this all of the time. This time I didn't even have anything to look for or wait on. I felt oddly useless standing in the middle of the forest all by myself.

I sat down counting the minutes off by the movements of the sun. For now, I'd have all the time in the world until Zetsu would come get me when they were finished. Then I'd be able to go back to Katsu and see his cute little face once more and hold him in my arms. I missed him. I'd never be able to forgive myself if they punished him for what I did and kept torturing him. He was the only thing I had left. Sometimes it felt like he was the only thing I had left to fight for.

I stared up at the sky completely and undeniably alone.

I started to think about what I was planning to ask the next time I saw Pein. It seemed like the right choice. There was no reason for them to keep Katsu and me apart, and if Zetsu trusts me enough he might agree with it. It wasn't as if having us stay in the same room would really offset my training or mission at all.

My mission. That brought a sour taste to my mouth. How did they expect me to kill this guy when none of them was able to take him out? What did Hayato even do to upset the Akatsuki so much? I had no doubt in my mind the Akatsuki was much more willing to kill someone for defying them than attempt to work around it. Would they kill me after I took this guy out? Assuming I was able to kill him in the first place. I already knew far too much about them to be left alone to do whatever I wanted. Maybe they would ask me to join them.

My mind started to drift back to this "meeting" or whatever they were actually doing in the cave. Zetsu never did really tell me. He _did_ trust me enough to be the Akatsuki's watch guard while they took care of … whatever it was. I could always just take a quick glimpse. No one would know. There might even be something I could use to get away. As soon as the thought came to mind, ink went soaring across Sarnik once more.

I didn't even think about whether or not it was my business to see what they were doing. They kidnapped me so it was my business now.

At first, I couldn't see anything, only darkness. Then as I looked closer, I could make out the light of what looked like chakra surrounding a body that was levitating off the ground eyes and mouth wide open. From what I could tell, it was only a boy with blood red hair and pale porcelain skin. The body was mangled leaving only once option: dead. I cringed. No wonder ninja's were after them. They were probably killing an innocent boy.

Disgusted I looked towards the two large hands made of stone that stood out of the ground, each finger with a person one it except one. My eyes caught on the unmistakable figure of Zetsu standing on one of the fingers. It would be impossible not to recognize him with the large Venus flytrap around his head yet at the same time it wasn't him. As I looked closer I saw it was only a hologram of him, along with all of the others except two—the two men I had seen earlier. I tried to study them all closely but I couldn't make out any of their faces. It was as if they were being blocked by something.

My stomach twisted uncomfortable as I watched Zetsu. My face started to heat up thinking about how easily I had lost control of myself twice around him. To think I almost… No, I couldn't even say it. It would make it too real. I quickly redirected my thoughts.

"Well, well, what do we have here?" a smooth voice cooed making me jump.

A hand quickly covered my mouth, another ripping off the radio around my neck. Breaking my chakra control, the ink fell off Sarnik. Desperately, I called the scroll back into the crystal, fighting the hands around me to buy time. To keep them from noticing the swirl of chakra as my necklace resealed.

My breath whooshed from my chest as the warm around my waist tightened its grip. Before I knew it, a chest was pressed against my back and I was being lifted up to my feet. I gasped, looking up to find my own eyes staring back at me.

_Dad._

My chest tightened. The world started to spin. The last thing I could remember was that same smirk around those golden speckled blue eyes before the world went black.

* * *

><p>I woke with a start, gasping for breath. Before I could even fill my lungs a gut wrenching pain shoots through my chest sending dots over my eyes. Flinching, I looked down to see I was bound tightly in ropes. I tried taking in a slow breath, testing to see how much room I had to breath, but I soon found out it was hard to even get a shallow breathe. Tied up like this, I didn't stand a chance of breaking free without using chakra.<p>

Suddenly aware of my surroundings, my eyes popped up scanning the area I was in. Only trees surrounded me so tall and large the shadows they casted on the ground kept even the grass from growing here, leaving everything brown and dried under the large canopy of vivid green leaves. My eyes danced around for any person, whether here now or recently, but there wasn't a single trace of chakra floating over the ground. Everything smelt natural. It was perfect.

_Why the hell am I always the one to be kidnapped?_ I groaned mentally. I let my forehead fall heavily on the ground as I laid in misery for a while, thinking of all of the odds. It was too unbelievable to even picture.

"Look who we have here," a taunting voice laughed.

Jerking my head up, I searched around, again taking in too sharp of a breath. I bit my lip to keep from cringing. Frantically looking around I searched every crack and crevice for the person, but no one was there. There was nothing. "Who's there?" I called out, forcing my voice level. Proudly, I realized my voice sounded scary and hard, even to my own ears.

"Looks like she's not as good as you yet Hayato," another laughed.

_Hayato?_

"Not yet."

There was a snap behind me. It wasn't loud, but I definitely heard it. Taking slow breathes I closed my eyes trying to reach out with my chakra for something, anything right now. I couldn't take not knowing what was happening, not knowing who was there.

Thinking about it made my head spin.

A soft intake of breath directly above my head drew my attention. Without moving, I lunged out with my chakra snaring whatever made the sound and forcefully knocking in down to the ground in front of me by the sheer pressure of my energy cutting off the air to their lungs. My eyes open to see a middle-aged man lying in front of me a shocked expression on his face. Unable to stop myself, I forced my body to move against the constricting roped, bruising my ribs as I brought my feet down hard on his leg. Bending my knees drawing him towards me, and I forced my upper body up so I could push off the ground and slam the man face first into the ground. He was still immobile, his body in shock from my chakra blast. He let out a surprised cry as I pressed my knees hard into his back.

"Where the hell am I?" I hissed, shoving my knees down into his spine. The ropes around my chest were making it harder and harder to breathe and the sudden drop in my chakra made me woozy but I didn't dare let up. "_Tell me_!"

"You're-Y-You're…" he sputtered, but three sudden presences behind me drew my attention.

The second I turned a man was pulling me up roughly by the front of the ropes around my chest. I let out a squeak as the rope cut into me before searing pain shot through my face and my head snapped painfully to the side. Hot tears burned my eyes, but I couldn't let them fall, unaware they were even there. I was too shocked staring up into my own eyes, two dark blue eyes covered with golden speckles around the pupil and hidden under the same bright red hair.


	15. First Step To Insanity: Hearing Voices

**AN:** Alright here's the next chapter. I wasn't quite entirely happy with this chapter. Something kind of felt off when I was writing it, but I'm hoping that was all in my mind and everythings fine. There's going to be a lot more plot and fluff - somehow I always seem to involve both of those at the same time oddly enough - coming up in the next couple of chapters (like 4 or so). Hopefully you enjoy it.

I can't tell you how happy I was to see how many favorite stories I got after last chapter! Between all of those and the alerts its made up for the lack of comments coming - hey, we all like to get them now.

Sorry this took so long to get out, but I actually lost my zipdrive that has all of my writing on it. Opps, lol. It took me months to find it again, only to realize I had accidentally packed it. So sorry again for the wait. Unless I lose it again hopefully there will never be a delay that long.

FOR ALL OF YOU THAT DON'T KNOW ALREADY: I have posted up a litte side chapter that is involved in this story from Zetsu's POV on request by one of my lovely readers. It's complete and already posted. I know some people have already seen it. If you're bored and have a little extra time or just like to see what I think is going on inside our beloved cannibals head, you might want to check it out.

Anyways, on with the story! Read and review please!

* * *

><p><strong>First Step To Insanity: Hearing Voices<strong>

**Chapter 15**

Two more men stood in front of me, but my eyes were only for one.

For the briefest moment, I thought I was looking up at my father again. A tall, broad shouldered man with fiery red mane of hair that nearly reached his shoulders, striking dark blue eyes, and a slightly crooked mouth stood in front of me, one hand on his hip, the other buried in his pocket. A ring of light fell between the rich green leaves above, casting a halo of warm light around his body. It was like a dream.

My body crumpled helplessly back onto the ground as a strange feeling of euphoria shot through me and tears dotted my eyes. He was back. I must have been wrong; he must have lived. T

I traced eagerly over his face once more, desperate to drink in every detail I had missed over the long years, and a sinking feeling started to grow in my gut. There were things missing, things I couldn't find. The laugh lines I remembered crinkling around his mouth and eyes were smooth and clear, his skin still taunt and young from what it should be in his early forties. Instead of his bright crooked smile, his face was schooled, a calm manipulative glint in his eyes. The stubborn tuff of hair that refused to lie down at the side of his head was flat. What really struck me deep though, was there was no love hidden in the dark blues eyes. No caring. No joy. Only calculated malice.

Drawing back, I moved to cover my mouth in horror as my stomach heaved and threatened to come up, but I remember my arms were still bound securely from the restricting rope.

My eyes flickered towards the other man noticing instantly heavy bandages on his left leg. Something exploded in my head and I looked quickly between the two people in front of me and the crumple man lying behind me. Three of them. . . . Usually ninjas—assuming they were since they managed to sneak up on me—traveled in squads of four, not three. One leader, the strongest and smartest and then three who specialized in each of the three arts: ninjutsu, genjutsu, and taijutsu. I reached out instinctively with my chakra for a fourth, but there was nothing. Then that must mean their fourth person was. . . .

I gasped horrified as I put two and two together, but I didn't dare to say a word. The pain of being slapped finally broke through with the burning in my cheek. What were the chances that a ninja squad was so far out here, missing a member, and that they just happened to find my location? These men attempted to kill Zetsu and me earlier.

The shock of what was happening hit me. The importance of being oblivious right now was so crucial I didn't even have to think before I automatically played off my surprise and aggression as a confused and frightened mask. I attempted to playoff the hidden tears of my false hopes to fear, by attempting to force myself to panic.

It wasn't too hard, considering the situation.

Compared to how badly Zetsu had put me through this was nothing.

"Well, well," the man beside the strange redhead chuckled bringing to my attention a rather deep scar running from the outside corner of his right eye to his chin, "looks like the wench's finally realized what's happening to her. A bit slow, ain't she? You sure she's the one Hayato?"

"I'm sure," the man with red hair spoke. His voice was soft and deep like velvet. It made me shiver.

_Hayato?_

_Oh, shit._

I groaned, nearly falling face first into the dirt as I finally realized just who this man in front of me was. He was Hayato, the man I was assigned to kill by the Akatsuki. He must have been out searching for members to kill them off. When he happened upon Zetsu and me, he had probably attacked to capture us for information, but realized Zetsu was too strong for them and retreated. I was supposed to kill this man and he already had me out numbered, bound up, and helpless.

The man I had taken out earlier let out another grunt as he slowly pulled himself to his feet. For the first time, I got a better look at the man, noticing he was far shorter than I originally thought he was. He was easily shorter than both of the other two were and he was thin as a board, despite the definition of his body. There wasn't anything striking about his appearance really. The only noteworthy thing was that he held back his short brown hair with a green bandana. I held back my satisfaction of hurting him so quickly and forced my face to remain blank. What else was I going to do when I was face to face with people who obviously had big plans for me, plans I would no doubt hate? The man shot me a glare before wobbling over towards the other two. "I liked her better when she was slee—knocked out," he corrected seeing the glare Hayato shot him.

That confirmed it. These people attacked Zetsu when I was sleeping days ago. I really was in trouble.

Much to my surprise, though Hayato flicked his wrist and a torrent of air sliced the roped binding me. _Air element,_ I noted, eyes wide. They were very rare. Out of the five elements, air had become by far the least common in the entire ninja world, making any air element uses quite dangerous. They're moves were the least known.

I stared up at him confused, but I didn't hesitate to get to my feet—purposefully stumbling a bit—and tenderly stretch out my tight muscles. A bruise on my sternum was already forming from how tight the ropes were. By the sore pain stretching through my upper body, I hadn't moved for a couple of days. "What do you want?" I asked hesitantly making sure to keep a proper distance from my new captors.

I jumped unexpectantly as they all started to laugh. _What the bloody Hell is going on?_ Before I could even think about a possible solution Hayato abruptly stopped laughing and gave me a light grin. When he smiled, it was almost striking how much he looked like my dead father. Only his eyes were all wrong.

Not a good thought when I was going to need to kill the man.

"That's settled then. She's not working with them."

I frowned, furrowing my eyebrows. _Just like that? They're letting me off?_

The other two nodded with grins and the entire mood seemed to lighten, scaring me slightly. Hayato tapped the earth with his foot heartily and four chairs rose from the ground, one for each of us. I backed away from it steadily.

_Earth too?_ Not surprising when all jonin and even chunin had to have mastery over two elements. I stored that information away for later thought.

"I'm terribly sorry about the way you treated you. It seems to be completely uncalled for. I hope you will forgive us." His dipped his head down in a sort of bow that made me shift uncomfortably.

"Oh, um, of course," I lied too aware all three of them looked at me expectantly before they sat down. Numbly I followed suit. "But, um"—I hesitated, hoping to look more uncertain and shy than I felt—"who did you, uh, think I was working for?" I tried to keep my voice as innocent as possible.

"The Aka—" Bandana man tried to answer.

"The people we've been following," Hayato interrupted smoothly, but I already knew what the man I had tricked was going to say.

Biting the inside of my cheek hard I couldn't stop myself from wondering what world I had just fallen into. There I was hoping that people would find me and take me away from the Akatsuki without incriminating me and suddenly here they were, as if all I had to do was think it. It was too bad that this was the man I would have to kill in order to insure Katsu would live out the rest of his days. My stomach twisted awkwardly even picturing it. How ironic. There was no possible way I could trust these people. They had already tried to kill me once and knocked me out another time.

"I see," I murmured quietly.

Hayato looked up suddenly seeming to have remembered something. "Forgive me, I forgot to introduce ourselves. This is Ichigo Nobuki"—he gestured to the man I had attacked—"this is Shinji Toshiyuki"—the man with the scar gave a small smile—"and my name is Hayato Hiokosai."

My throat tightened painfully as an invisible brick wall obliterated me. _Hirokosai . . . then he must be. . . ._ Suddenly my mouth went dry and my heart wretched painfully down into my stomach. I didn't realize my entire body started to tremble uncontrollably, my wide eyes locked painfully on the man in front of me. I was related to this man. I had to be if he was from the Hirokosai Clan. Everyone was supposed to be dead.

The Akatsuki wanted me to kill the only other Hirokosai…

Hayato caught the stunned look in my eye before I could hide it and suddenly I found my face burning for an unknown reason. Forcing myself to stare down at me feet, I bit my lip hard, locking my hands firmly in my lap to hide my tremors. Oh gosh, that changed things. Only when I was sure I had regained a semblance of my control did I dare glance back up to see the calculating look in his eyes.

"You're from the Hirokosai Clan?" I asked breathlessly.

He nodded his head with the smile.

"What about you?" Shinji asked leaning forward slightly. "Your name," he clarified seeing the look on my face.

_Crap. Crap. Crap. Crap._

"Oh, um . . . I'm Luna Hirokosai," I offered with a small smile. I bit my tongue, not sure why I was suddenly lying. None of them seemed to notice though.

Hayato's face brightened up as a small smile spread across his face. His wide eyes studied me closely making me squirm. Did he realize we were the last two of our clan as well? "What a pleasant surprise!" he murmured. I was starting to think I liked it better when he didn't know my—fake—name.

"Now," Ichigo started after a brief glance between him and Hayato, "why exactly was someone like you out in the middle of the forest all by yourself?"

I took my time before answering, studying each of them thoroughly. What if they really were my shot away from the Akatsuki? They could be my only chance. Maybe it was a good thing that I was sent out to kill them. That meant that they weren't in affiliation with the Akatsuki. Maybe they could help me get Katsu back. I sat there weighing out the odds in my head, calculating in every possibility, every variable I could think of, running the numbers through my brain again and again. Every time I did, the chance they were here to help it kept coming out the same. There was hardly even a chance.

I stared into Hayato's eyes, ignoring the strange pricking in the back of my head. _Him,_ I thought softly. There was something off about him.

Making my decision, I sat back a bit, self-consciously adjusting my shirt and let my eyes wonder between them. A picture of the tree I was sitting in earlier came to me. "Well you probably won't believe me," I let out a soft chuckle, fiddling bashfully with the hem of my shirt before sneaking a flirtatious glance up towards Hayato—might as well play everything for what it was worth, "but I was harvesting Lac bugs off of the Khakda tree I was in." Judging by the looks on their faces I wasn't sure whether I was overdoing it or not, but I decided to push forward pretending to take their stumped looks as a need to further explain. "You know, it helps in making ninja bombs as the sealant around it."

Ichigo leaned back in his chair, folding his arms with a scowl. "Lac bugs?"

I palmed the back of my neck awkwardly. "Yeah. Lac bugs. I told you that you wouldn't believe me," I laughed softly.

Hayato smiled moving to stand up out of nowhere. Biting my lip slightly I watched him, keeping a small smile on my face as he extended his hand charmingly. I hadn't seen anyone move with such carefree grace. Forcing myself not to hesitate I took his hand allowing him to pull me up. My skin crawled at his touch. "Again I must apologize for our harsh behavior from before." He bent down brushing his lips against my knuckles. It was revolting. "Would you mind accompanying us then to the nearest village? You must be exhausted of staying in the forest for so long. Consider it my treat."

"Oh," I gasped.

A red flag instantly went off in my head. They were taking me with them to see if I was telling the truth. They were going to be taking me away from Zetsu, my only way back to Katsu. I was losing.

"I really shouldn't," I murmured not even sure what I was saying.

Hayato's smile widened.

"But how could I possible refuse?"

Instantly his smile fell. Then his flawless smile was back on his face so fast I wasn't sure if what I had seen was right. Smoothly he bowed down again, kissing my knuckles once more before looking me straight in the eye. "I'm honored."

That confirmed it. These people were after the Akatsuki and everyone involved with them. They wanted to see if I would run back to them now that I knew all of their names and faces. They didn't want me to come with them. They were hoping I was going to lead them straight to the Akatsuki.

As much as I wanted to rip my hand out of the snakes grasp, I held true to my ruse, forcing a soft blush and smile on my face as I carefully let him raise me from my seat. For now, it would be best to play it out, see if I could learn anything from them.

After all, if Hayato was my target I would most likely need to find a way around his remaining lackeys to get to him. This could be my only chance. I would just have to wait for a way out.

I scanned over all of them as discreetly as possible, searching for a headband, but I couldn't find one. There were no distinguishing marks on any of them. That ruled out the possibility they held allegiance to one of the five Hidden Villages. With that, the chance of these men working to get rid of the Akatsuki was less than 4%. If it was someone from one of the major ninja villages, I might have been able to bargain or prove my innocence. Now, I was doomed.

I made sure to keep my smile as sincere as possible while carefully withdrawing my hand from Hayato's grasp. The second my hand was free Hayato bent down—everyone promptly stood up joining us in standing for no reason—and he placed his hands on the ground. The chair instantly melted back into the earth. Awkwardly, I shifted on my feet, once again playing with the hem of my shirt.

All I needed to do was pretend to be someone I wasn't while trying to find the perfect time to kill them all. No big deal. I'd done things like this before.

I took a deep steadying breath, relaxing my body into an easy smile.

Yeah, I could do this.

Ichigo looked over at me catching my eye. I smiled slightly, tilting my head down in a mock shyness. Quickly he tore his gaze away. _That's not suspicious_, I laughed mentally. By the looks of it, he was still angry I had attacked and pinned him without the use of my arms. I'd probably be sour too if some punk pinned me because I let my guard down.

Ichigo folded his hands behind his head, staring off up at the cloud as Hayato made his way over towards me. When I glanced over at Shinji, he was looking at me with a bored expression on his face, his hands buried deep in his pockets. I smiled slightly at him, which he returned with his own upturn of his lips. Finally, I let my gaze drift over towards Hayato, looking up at him through my eyelashes.

Hayato grinned broadly. He nodded towards Shinji and Ichigo. Immediately both of them vanished into the trees. I forced myself to reel, feigning startled. Hayato's hand grasped my shoulder. It took everything in my power not to cringe away from him.

"Where'd they go?" I asked pinching my eyebrows together.

"I sent them up ahead to scout and make sure there wasn't anyone else out here. The forest can be a dangerous place." His hand slid off my shoulder as he explained, but I could still feel the lingering taste of his dusty smelling chakra. _You're not kidding,_ I thought darkly. Outwardly, I nodded mutely. "Shall we?" he murmured, gesturing towards the direction his minions left in.

"Of course," I grinned.

Thankfully, Hayato didn't offer up his arm for the journey and I was careful not to make any signs that I wanted to be any closer to him than I was already forced. In all honesty, it was nerve wracking having him walk so close. I could nearly feel the heat of his arm as we went. For the longest time we walked in silence, Hayato more than willing to stick close to my side while the others drifted up ahead. My back was rigid. I could barely breathe through the tension. Yet, I couldn't do anything. Not only did I have to protect my own neck, I had to gather information and wait for a perfect chance to strike down the man next to me. For now, his guard was too high. While he still suspected me of being part of the Akatsuki, I was helpless.

The trees here were beginning to thin out, showing the first signs of heading back towards civilization. The air was still dry and fresh, a hint of pine and maple lingering in the air no matter which direction I looked. If I had been walking with anyone else, it might have been pleasant.

I could only keep a keen eye out for Zetsu praying he would find out I was gone and come and save me as fast as possible. Subconsciously I reached up towards my neck, feeling for the radio.

_Shit!_

Hayato was suddenly keeping a closer watching on me. I knew he was gauging my reaction no doubt about it. Before he could see my grimace, I forced my face into a twist of confusion and worry. At least I hoped. It was the only card I could play.

Why hadn't I thought about the radio before? It was no wonder he was suspicious. What other reason would a woman, all alone in the middle of the forsaken forest, near the place the Akatsuki were have a _shortwave_ radio for? He already knew I knew where they were.

_Damn it. I'm such an idiot…_ I groaned, rubbing my neck and closing my eyes. I was hoping it looked like my neck was sore from waking up. Furious with myself I inserted my own chakra into my neck pinching a nerve purposefully. Not even the dull twinge seemed to clear my head.

What if they tried to contact Zetsu after they knocked me out?

Now I was desperately praying for Zetsu to come and get me. _God, when did I get so dependent on him?_

"Everything alright?"

Only one way to find out. "Hm? Oh, yeah… I was just wondering if you guys happen to know what happened with my radio. You haven't seen it have you?"

Hayato's eyes instantly widened. So he wasn't expecting me to bring it up. That probably threw a wrench into his thoughts. "No we didn't," he lied smoothly, faking sympathy. I worked my lip in what I hoped was worry. "We just found you out in the woods. Maybe you lost it on your own or something." We walked in silence for a second before he glanced over at me. "You don't mind me asking what it was for do you…?"

"Oh! Not at all," I smiled, quickly scrambling for an excuse. "It was so I could tell my brother when I was on my way back and if something happened... he's probably worried sick now though…"

"Brother?"

_Oh crap,_ I realized. A brother? I already told them I was a Hirokosai! There was no way I would be able to pull off having a brother, another rare survivor of the clans' extermination without having to let them meet. Now he was going to think I had someone out here looking for me.

"Non-related," I spat-out quickly. Peeking over to Hayato, I shied down meeting his piercing gaze. "I … I was adopted when I was really young. A couple years after … well, _it_ happened. He took me in and took care of me."

"I see," he murmured.

The previous silence continued, only this time much thicker and crushing. I hoped Zetsu was looking for me by now. I didn't care if I sounded pathetic wanting him to come save me. The truth was I felt a whole lot safer around him, the cannibal than I could ever feel around Hayato and his men. Why didn't I see any of them coming when I was patrolling?

"Do you need to stop?" he asked out of the blue.

Curiously, I looked over; ready to snap at him if he thought I was a pansy or something when the logical part of my brain kicked in. We'd been walking for a long time now, probably close to two or three hours without stopping. Normal people would most likely be exhausted by now. He was probably expecting me to be tired. Thirsty. I fumbled for a little bit, hesitantly slowing down. His eyes were watching me expectantly. "Are you sure?" I asked hoping it would cover my pause. "I mean, you said that you wanted to get to the closest town. I don't want to slow you down or anything."

"Nonsense," he grinned. "I have all the time in the world."

"If you say so."

Awkwardly I tried forcing a blush. To my anger, it wouldn't happen. So I did the one thing I knew would make me blush.

I thought back when I was straddling Zetsu's lap, letting the same feeling run over me again. How I pressed into him and he trembled and shivered under my hands. The feel of his cool rough skin against my own. A flush of embarrassment and pleasure rose to my cheeks to both my horror and pleasure.

Satisfied with the slight warming of my cheeks I made my way over to a fallen tree. With one last — hopefully hesitant— look over my shoulder at Hayato, I sat down and stretched out, letting my breathing come in and out a bit faster than it needed to.

I jumped slightly at the sound of light laughter. Hayato made his way over, obviously amused and this time I didn't have to try to force the blush that covered my cheeks.

Did he see right through my act?

Was he just humoring me and planning to take me to his base where he was going to torture me for information?

"There," he grinned, easily sliding onto the tree next to me. With him leaning in so close, giving me what I knew was supposed to be a charming smile I wanted nothing more than to pull away. My heart clenched painfully. "Isn't that better?"

I forced back a grin. "Much."

With neither of us knowing what exactly to say to each other, we slipped into a stiff silence. Every now and then, I would catch him glancing over at me from the corner of his eye. Sometimes, I even think he wanted me to catch him looking at me.

The woods were thankfully bustling with noise, giving me a pleasant distraction from the man sitting next to me. All of the leaves cast dancing shadows on the floor, twirling and springing in a light breeze. I stared with too much concentration at a couple of rabbits that had stumbled into the clearing in front of us, sadly hoping that with each second we sat here Zetsu was getting closer.

Something brushed against my hand. Jerking to my feet, I sucked in a deep breath; my heart hammering wildly in my chest as I unsuccessfully tried wiping off whatever germs he had contaminated me with. My hand! He was trying to hold my hand! First, the man was going to kill me and now he wants to hold my hand?

Oh gosh, and I just pulled away as if he had the plague. Darn it. I couldn't win.

Looking over at him, I placed my hand over my heart, keeping my eyes wide. Taking in a deep breath, I quickly stuttered out, "Oh, I-I'm so sorry! You just-You startled me." Forcing out a weak laugh, I made myself reach out and place my hand over his. To my pride, I didn't even twitch when he grinned and maneuvered his hand so his fingers slid easily between my own.

I wanted to gag.

"Ready to go?" I asked giving him a big fake smile. It was surprisingly how calm I sounded despite how fast my heart was pounding. Just to be safe I added, "I think I've held you up long enough for one day."

Hayato smiled. His eyes were cold and hard, but his face seemed happy as he easily stood back up and joined my side, his hand dropping mine in favor of the small of my back to direct me in the proper direction. I shivered at his touch, something I think he took as a good thing, for he pulled me a little closer. "Whatever you want," he murmured. I had to bite my lip to keep the bile from rising in my throat.

Against my better judgment I let him keep his hand along my lower back, too paranoid that if I took even a single step away from him it would give me away. It was already bad enough that I jerked away from him. I'd probably made myself look like an idiot back there. If I kept this up, he would never trust me.

"Is something bothering you?" he asked, surprisingly sounding concerned.

"Hm, uh, no, I"—I kicked myself again, sputtering for a good lie—"I'm fine."

He raised an eyebrow. Quickly I glanced away.

_How in the world can people live acting like this?_

"It's just … are you _really_ a Hirokosai?"

Laughing he turned back forward. It looked like he took my cover well. Acting brainless and flirty wasn't my specialty so I was halfway shocked he could be so dumb.

His eyes locked on a tree up ahead for the longest time. Curiously, I followed his gaze, but I couldn't see anything different. Maybe he had been staring off into space. Just to be sure, I sensed the chakra of the area instantly encountering something familiar, but my mind was too frazzled to register who or what it had been.

Looking back at Hayato I suddenly felt my heart plummet to my stomach. Quickly I shook my head. "Never met another one have you?"

Realizing what I had asked I cursed, quickly stumbling for an apology, using my mortification as an excuse to escape his touch on my back. If he was a true Hirokosai, his family had been targeted and killed by whoever murdered my family. All Hirokosai were dead. And I just brought it up. "Oh God, I'm so sorry. I, uh, I-I didn't mean to . . . I shouldn't have asked. I'm so—"

"No, no, it's fine. I don't mind." He smiled over at me, his arm falling back to its side. "There aren't many of us left. I was the exact same way the first time I met someone else from our clan."

All of the suspicion and fear I felt a moment ago was suddenly gone, my curiosity bubbling over. Eagerly I stepped up next to him, unable to tear my eyes away. "You've met someone else?"

His chakra stirred suddenly, moving slowly and stiffly through his system. I instantly connected with his sadness. "Just one: an old man in the Land of Lightning."

"What happened?"

"He died just after I met him."

"That's horrible…" I gasped.

Hayato stared out at the woods for a long moment. Now our hands were almost touching. Wanting him to keep talking I stepped closer as we walked still revolted by his touch but too intrigued to fight it. He gave me a tight smile. I reacted instantly at the feeling of his chakra stirring angrily. "You don't have to talk about it," I sputtered quickly.

"How did you—are you a chakra reader?" he asked a surprised looked on his face.

I flushed slightly. Chakra readers were what we called the people in the Hirokosai Clan who were able to sense out the presence of other's chakra like sensory ninjas. They, as their title suggested could read chakra. I'd only heard the term a couple of times when talking with my Dad, but I'd never actually had someone call _me_ a chakra reader. It was actually … exhilarating.

"Yeah, you?"

"Of course. It runs in the bloodline. Anyone who has activated their kekkei genki can do it." He gave me an incredulous look. I glanced away awkwardly, suddenly remembering he could still be an enemy and that I was revealing too much. At least I knew he had the same kekkei genki as I did. That meant he probably could use it better than me too. I couldn't help but wonder how he had found out so much about the clan though. "I thought the Holder would know more," he muttered under his breath.

Abruptly I stopped. My blood went cold. "What?" I snapped.

He whirled around his hands out in a defensive stance. I finger-like twig reached up barely touching the back of my ankle. I jerk to the side, away from whatever trick he was playing. He muttered something quickly under his breath, lowering his hands back to his sides with a hard expression. In my head, I started to panic.

I gulped, feeling an uncalled for sense of betrayal pulsing through my veins. He knew. Somehow, he knew I was entrusted with the scrolls. But how? How the hell did he find out what my father only told me when we were alone together? My mind was reeling. Everything was getting sharper. The wind started blowing. The familiar pulse of energy shot out to my fingertips, but a sharp voice in my head sent the feeling soaring.

"_**Don't**__."_

I nearly screamed. Jumping, I nearly leapt back towards Hayato my eyes wide. He glared suspiciously at me, but I couldn't notice. I couldn't see anything right now. The voice in my head whispered in my ear again. As if required to, shivers raced down my spine at the sound of his smooth voice. _"Tell him a lie."_ My knees went weak.

"I-I"—my mind was racing for something, anything to tell him, but I couldn't think of anything. In my desperation tears were forming behind my eyes—"I'm sorry. You just . . . you reminded me of something my dad told me a-a long time ago," I finished half-truthfully, not even able to look him in the eye.

A heavy hand fell against my shoulder. Flinching, my head snapped up instinctively, coming within inches of Hayato's face. All of the thoughts in my head momentarily froze seeing how close he was. His crystal blue eyes looked sternly at me. "I understand."

_What?_ Staring in shock, I bit my lip hard in disbelief. He believed me. He knew I knew where the Akatsuki was and that I lied straight to his face back at the clearing but he believed that he told me something my father told me. There was no way.

But how did he know who I was?

I shivered visibly as Zetsu spoke again in my head. I jerked back slightly coming again back to my dilemma. _"__**Don't do anything suspicious**__,"_ he warned.

_Like talk to people in my head?_

"Thanks," I muttered.

I wasn't quite sure if I had been speaking to Zetsu or Hayato but either way Hayato smiled guiding me gently back into a walk. While he led me safely away from any potential tree I might have ran into I let my mind run furiously through possibilities that could have led to Zetsu's voice getting in my head.

I ran through my memory looking for any time that I could have possibly met him that I might not have realized. Either I somehow stumbled into him or Zetsu had a way to force himself into someone's mind. One thing came to mind: the presence I had felt near the tree Hayato had been staring at. There was a single question about it now. That had been Zetsu. He had obviously found out I had been kidnapped and found me then for some reason he left. Could it have been then? I couldn't rule out the chance but it seemed unlikely.

_Zetsu?_ I called awkwardly in my head. Maybe if he could speak to me I could speak back. I waited patiently as Hayato and I walked forward but there was no sign of him answering me.

Frowning I closed my eyes, scanning inside myself for anything different. To my utter amazement, I found a separate chakra attached to my own, something dark and controlling, seeping through my body exploring me like a probe with the familiar cruel intent boiling and bubbling inside it: Zetsu's chakra. Goosebumps shot across my skin at the realization. It wasn't much, but no doubt about it his chakra was inside of me. And if his chakra was in me, he would have had to touch me some time. I cringed at the thought of how long his chakra could have been inside me without me knowing until one thought came to mind.

Something _had_ touched me lately; right after Hayato gave away he knew I was the Holder. I hadn't given it much thought. I knew Zetsu could morph with his surroundings and completely conceal his chakra that way. Maybe it hadn't been Hayato that had caused that twig to come up out of the ground. Maybe it wasn't a twig at all. Maybe it was a finger….

"Here we are," Hayato announced, snapping me unpleasantly out of my thoughts. I looked up shocked to see that we were now standing in front of one of the largest hot springs I had seen. As I glanced quickly around, I noticed we had left the forest a while ago and had entered a relatively small tourist city.

At the sound of Hayato's voice, Shinji's scarred face popped around the corner of the rather tall wooden fence that surrounded the springs, a sour look on his face. "'Bout time you two showed up."

"Yeah!" Ichigo's head appeared. "We were just about to come and get you! We thought you got lost or something," he laughed obnoxiously.

I frowned staring past the two towards the intimidating building that rose up over the fence. A gut-wrenching feeling of dread fell hard on my chest. Getting out of this place was going to be hell.

"Now, let's find that brother of yours," Hayato smiled.

Right.

My brother.


	16. Awkward Moments

**AN: **Finally getting back to some more potential Zetsu and Amaya love :) I say potential because they haven't really gotten to anything yet. They're kind of still at the awkward fluttering stage before anything happens, some of the moment entertaining and moody times of any relationship really. I thought I'd get this one out nice and soon for everyone since my recent loss of my zip drive (they should really make them like glow in the dark or something so they're easier to find).

But anyways, I honestly don't have much to say about this chapter. Then again, I can't really stand Hayato - which is sad because I even created him - if only for the fact he's so boring to write because he's so smart and you can't really show that since Amaya doesn't really realize it yet. In my opinion he is extremely boring.

_**Do you guys get that feeling?**_

_****_If so I can make him more interesting I guess...

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 16<strong>

**Awkward Moments**

I stayed completely silent as I stared at the semi-populated stone streets between the three story houses that rose on each side in front of me. There were a few street vendors calling out to people with various goods ranging from jewelry to food. All around me there were repugnant smells the city brought; sewers, trash, and the natural stench of the citizens were all things I hadn't had the pleasure of dealing with since I had been captured by the Akatsuki and it hit me hard. Here the four of us were, at the nearest city from my spot in the woods. The strangest part…

I knew were we were.

"Nuorri Village?"

Both Shinji and Ichigo looked over at us, each of their faces twisted in a mix between success and anticipation. I felt a shutter run through me as Zetsu's chakra shifted inside me, but I tried hard to ignore it. Thankfully lies came easier to my mind now that I had some purchase of information.

"Yes," Hayato frowned, gesturing towards the decently sized village in front of us with a casual sweep of his hand. "Isn't this where you live? The nearest village through the woods."

I turned towards my red haired captor with an apologetic smile. "I live in Tsuoma, a thirty minute walk that way"—I pointed over towards the east. "Nuorri has no purpose for Lac bugs here. They don't have any ninja. I thought you would know that so I let you lead the way. I'm sorry."

"What?" Ichigo grumbled. "This isn't even her village?"

"Seems not," Shinji mumbled.

I bowed my head sheepishly, glancing up at Hayato through my eyelashes. He closed his eyes for only the barest of moments before smiling down at me. "An honest mistake. We'll take you there immediately."

I frowned, looking up at the darkening skies. Grabbing his arm lightly, I gestured towards the village. "It's already getting late. Let's at least stay in a nice hotel for the night and we'll meet my brother tomorrow. He will be fine without me for a time. I won't run you raged just for your help."

Hayato gave a slight nod. "Very well. If you would be so kind as to show us to this hotel you speak of we will stay the night and leave at dawn. It might be hard for your brother not knowing where you are tonight and I won't burden him any longer than need be."

I grinned, happily recalling the last time I had been in this small little village years ago. It paid to have a memory like mine. If things had even remained slightly the same, I would know just where to take them. This time, I wouldn't even have to lie.

Keeping my hand in Hayato's arm, I led him through town unable to hide my grin at something so familiar. He grinned down at me once when he caught my eye, his arm flexing and pulling me closer. Inside I wanted to gag but I knew I had to hold up pretenses, even if just for a moment.

The hotel I took them to was near the middle of the village, standing several stories high and made completely out of bamboo, a rare commodity for this part of the outskirts of the Fire Nation. There were plenty of glass windows and balconies for each room, lights and flowers decorating the building in a simple but classy glow. It was the best hotel in the village.

To my immense pleasure the same old man that worked the front desk was still here. I'd recognize the countless wrinkles on his soft head and the dropping frown of his thoughtful dark eyes anywhere. I smiled broadly knowing he would recognize me as well. Things couldn't have worked out better if I had planned them.

"Ah! Miss Hirokosai!" he called when he recognized me from across the room. "It's so nice to see you again!"

"Yes, Mr. Motsumoto, it's so good to see you too," I smiled, hurrying over to the small old man.

"It's been a long time since I've seen you around here now. Finally decided to stop back in town for that game of cards you promised me?"

Grinning sheepishly, I shook my head, gesturing back towards Hayato, Shinji, and Ichigo. The three had snuck up quietly behind me, none of them saying a word at my flawless reminiscing with someone I appeared to know a long time. "I'm sorry, but I'll have to call a rain check. These men have offered to escort me back to Tsuoma, but it's so late I made them stop for the night."

"I see, I see. Two rooms then?"

"Yes please."

"Very well, follow Rem and she will show you to your rooms."

"Thank you."

A young woman with her hair pulled tightly back into a traditional Japanese bum with chopsticks appeared in a hallway off to the left, her uniform perfectly pressed. I tried to walk faster towards her, hoping to walk beside her but Hayato seemed determined to cling to my slide. Letting my smile fall, I followed silently behind her, wishing I was anywhere else.

As we continued to walk, Hayato annoyingly at my side the entire time, I made sure to at least remain aware of my surroundings. Even though I had been here once before, I wanted to make sure I wasn't missing a single detail that could help me escape. I was being led towards what I guessed was my room, directly across from where Hayato, Ichigo, and Shinji would be staying though I wasn't quite sure since I hadn't been listening to a single thing the woman had been saying as we walked. Anything I could remember to focus on now might help me get away. Now that I knew where I was this was my chance to make a quick getaway.

I shifted anxiously as the woman leading us around the building showed me my room. By the time I actually started paying attention to her I realized she had been rambling on about something this entire time.

"—special room. The baths are on the bottom level right after the front desk. If you need anything please let me know." She gave me a cheerful smile that I struggled to return. "Does everything seem in order?"

Briefly I glanced around the room. Turning back to her I made my voice as sweet as possible. "Yes, everything looks wonderful."

"Very well then. Have a nice stay." Without another word she bowed, backing out of the room.

I let out a shaky sigh collapsing on the bed. My entire body was shaking. Everything inside me seemed to have turned into jello, churning and twisting uncomfortably. I'd never felt so nervous in my life. Who would have thought that Hayato would bring me to somewhere I knew? I hadn't been to this place since a few years after I had met Katsu.

Now I had nothing to do but wait for everyone to fall asleep.

The minutes ticked by slower than I could have ever imagined, the hours barely passing as I stared up at the ceiling. Yet, there was nothing else I could do but wait and watch, listening for any movement from Hayato's room.

As stupid as I felt, I was waiting to here Zetsu's voice in my head again, telling me what to do next. I wanted him to tell me where to go, where to run, giving me an easy escape. Right now I wanted nothing more than to get out of here. For a second I couldn't help but pause, realizing what I just thought. _Wow. Something must be wrong with me,_ I thought with a chuckle. First I was trying to do anything to get away from the Akatsuki and now I wanted to go back? That wasn't right.

Yet still to my displeasure, Zetsu's voice never came. I was on my own.

There was a time when I would have jumped at the opportunity to make a quick getaway on my own, slipping out unnoticed by everyone. Before I was captured I loved that danger, the thrill of getting caught. Now though, I didn't know if I wanted to put myself through it. What if I ran the wrong way? What if Zetsu couldn't find me after I got away, even with his chakra inside of me?

I rolled over on the bed, staring around the room. It was beautiful. If I wasn't staying here against my will I would have no doubt about it loved to stay here. The last time I was here everything was just the same. Truly wonderful. There was everything I could possibly want right at my finger tips.

With a sigh I pulled myself off the bed and went over to the balcony I had. The small city stared back on me as I leaned against the railing thoughtfully.

I could always make a run for it. Maybe that was what Zetsu was waiting for, me to get away and go back in the forest where he would be free to come out and contact me. Then again, the more I thought about it the less likely it seemed. As much as Zetsu knew I could come up with plans to escape I was quite sure he didn't think I could actually do it, considering I hadn't even been able to get away from the Akatsuki once. After all, my last attempt didn't go so well.

"Why won't you just talk to me?" I murmured.

Out of pure curiosity I dipped back inside myself with chakra, checking to see if Zetsu was even still there. It didn't take me nearly as long to find it. _Good,_ I thought with a faint smile.

I closed my eyes for a moment, simply listening to the birds and every day clatter of a city. I missed that sound so much. It could be months before I could hear it again so I let myself relax completely, seeing only with my ears. Only a few more hours and it would be time…

* * *

><p>Two sharp abrupt knocks broke me instantly from my trance. My heart kicked up into my chest. Zetsu must be here. He was the only person I knew that knocked like that. I nearly tripped over a chair as I raced to rip open the door. Just as I was gong to open my mouth and say something I froze. Shinji stood there with a blank stare on his face.<p>

"Oh," I mumbled, trying to come up with an excuse to have my mouth hanging open. "I wasn't expecting you."

"Expecting someone else?" he sneered.

I blanched. "No," I snapped. "I wasn't expecting any_one_ else. I was expecting _something_ else. What's your problem?"

His face darkened, his scar making his face look even angrier. I forced myself to keep a blank face. He didn't need to know he looked intimidating. "My mistake."

It took all of my will power not to cross my arms or slam the door in his face. Somehow I managed a soft expression; one I didn't even knew I had. Shinji looked away quickly. "So can I help you?" I asked impatiently. My voice came off thankfully as though I was tired.

"Hayato wants me to tell you we'll be eating dinner out tonight and wishes for you to be ready in half an hour _if_ that is alright with you of course. Since we've been traveling all day we haven't gotten to eat. He apologized for the late hour."

"Tell him that sounds wonderful."

Lie.

What type of person wants to go out and eat at 10 o'clock at night?

With a smile and a polite goodbye I quietly shut the door, waiting until I couldn't hear Shinji's retreating footsteps anymore. Fuming at the mouth I stormed around the room, tearing at my hair. For once in my life I wished that this would be simple. After all the Akatsuki did kidnap me, I would think that they would still want to use me for something instead of let me be taken by a bunch of strangers.

Hayato was waiting me out, pushing the time we wouldn't be in contact to only a few hours. He already said we would be leaving at dawn. He knew I would make a run for it. What was worse, if I did leave just when they went to sleep my chakra trail wouldn't be gone by the time they woke up. Hayato said he was a chakra reader too. He would be able to follow my trail all the way to me.

Letting out my anger I lashed out, the bubbling chakra that shot through me, directing it towards the lamp on the table. Instantly the glass shattered, splints shooting across the floor. Clenching my teeth I smashed my foot against the ground. All of the glass shot in the air, hanging there for a moment before breaking into dust. Seeing all traces of the lamp where gone I collapsed on my bed face first, screaming into the pillow.

This was killing me. I was stuck here with a bunch of people that only wanted the scrolls of my clan and I was forced to live with part of Zetsu latched onto my chakra network. The worst thing about it was that I didn't even have the slightest idea which people were really the good guys.

Two dark, cruel chakra burst over everything. I gasped, clutching at my throat as the heavy weight of their aura melted over everything, dripping and leaking across the ground and over the furniture. The smell of blood, burning metal, and something simply repulsive seeped over me, encasing me in one of the foulest stenches I'd could ever remember. My heart skipped a beat in my chest. My hands started to clam up.

"Here it is."

"Are you sure this is the right one Hidan?"

"Yes damn it! Do I have to repeat myself to you?"

"You better watch it before I _do_ kill you," the deeper of the two voices threatened.

I propped myself up on my elbows, turning my head to the door. There was no chance in the world that conversation was between two normal every day law-abiding citizens, that and their chakra was so dark, so controlling. Just as I was about to go and peek through the peep-hole when the door slammed open. Two people stood outside, both dressed in long pitch black robes covered in large red swirling clouds the buttoned up along the middle.

I couldn't help it. I stared.

"Are you Amaya Hirokosai?" the closest one asked his voice considerably higher than the other's. I matched his voice to the name I had overheard: Hidan.

He frowned down at me, his smooth face far less than amused as he clenched a three-bladed blood red scythe over his shoulder. His light purple eyes cut into me like ice. Instinctively I shrank back studying him closely. All of his light grey hair was slicked back smoothly. A Yugakure headband was tied loosely around his pale neck, a long slash right through the middle. Something hung around his neck I did not recognize however, a simple beaded long chain with a circle encasing an upside down triangle in it.

Before I could bring myself to answer the other one shifted, catching my eye. I was instantly struck by what I could make out of him—or I should say, what I couldn't make out of him. His entire lower face was covered by a loose hanging mask while the back of his head was encased in a silver cloth hiding both his hair color and the rest of his head. A headband from the Village Takigakure sat proudly on his forehead. What really threw me off though wasn't even the fact his skin appeared to be so tan it looked fake. It was his eyes, light olive green pupils and cloudy red scleras. I froze under his gaze the hairs on the back of my neck rising up as a cold chill tore threw my body.

Zetsu's chakra inside me suddenly swirled and shifted. He moved through me suddenly building and morphing. It made me jump, snapping back into my body for the first time.

"Yes," I answered.

Just now realizing both of them were still standing in the hallway, directly in front of Hayato's door across the hall I gulped, motioning for them to come in. Hayato was supposed to come out and head down to the lobby to meet me for dinner any second now. Neither moved. I frowned, glaring at the two of them. "Will you get in here before the man who captured me walks out and sees you two?" I growled through clenched teeth.

The man with the hidden face glared at me but complied rather reluctantly. "What the hell are you doing Kakuzu?" Hidan screeched, waving his arms around. "Listening to some pipsqueak now? Since when do you—"

"Shut up Hidan."

"Well then," the Hidan snapped turning towards me, stepping grumpily into the room, "get your ass moving already."

Standing up slowly I took a second to finally let this dawn on me. The second I realized what was happening my chest nearly started vibrating my heart beat so fast. All of my worries seemed to only center around one thing right now: getting out. Still I forced myself to remain calm.

I walked around quickly, grabbing my bag that I had thrown on the floor sometime in my mindless pacing and checked briefly for all of the scrolls and kunai. Almost subconsciously I reached up, grasping my hexagonal crystal. When I was sure I had everything I stepped back in front of the two, silently waiting to be told what to do.

"We'll be leaving through the lobby. Don't say anything. Don't motion to anyone or I _will_ make your life a living hell," Kakuzu informed, glaring at me. Hidan snickered seeming to be satisfied.

"We can't. Hayato's expecting me down there in less than five minutes. He's not going to just let me leave and the old man that works the counter would recognize me."

"Hayato?" Hidan asked, giving me a funny look. "I thought you were kidnapped, not out with your boyfriend."

My cheeks burned red but I shoved it off as anger. There was no reason that I would get mad he mentioned something like a boyfriend. I didn't even have the life for a boyfriend. "No," I hissed. "_He_ is the guy that captured me. I convinced him I am meeting my brother in the next town so I could learn more about my target."

"What!" he cried, pointing his scythe directly at my face. "You're the one Leader found to kill that bastard? _You?_"

Rolling my eyes, I ignored him, instead turning towards Kakuzu. At least he seemed to be a little more in control of himself to listen to reason. "It'll be easier and faster if we just jump out the window and walk through town like nothings wrong."

"What? Why? I need another sacrifice to Jashin. I'll kill this bastard and we'll leave in no time! I'd get both him and the old man. No sweat."

Kakuzu glared at me before turning his head towards Hidan. I noticed very quickly that even his neck seemed very muscular. Anyone who could actually say they had a muscular neck was not a person that I wanted to mess with. "Hidan, your rituals take too long. We'll head out the window. You"—he turned menacingly to me—"keep your mouth shut before I decide to kill you."

Huffing to myself I pulled my bag tighter on my shoulder. This would have been so much easier if Zetsu had simply come and got me. Then we would be able to merge into the ground and appear back at base.

Not that I actually wanted to be with him or anything.

Kakuzu didn't even look at me before he headed towards the balcony and jumped. Hidan followed quickly after, muttering things about Jashin under his breath. I had no choice but to follow two new strangers to what I would hope to be somewhere far away.

There was a knock on the door as I went to follow. My heart leaped into my throat. As quiet as possible I jumped across the room. There was no way I could get caught now. Just as I put my foot up on the edge of the balcony railing the door bust open. I hopped over praying to whatever God was out there I wasn't seen.

Kakuzu and Hidan both looked at me. "Let's go."

We took off at a painstakingly slow pace. Kakuzu didn't seem to trust me enough to let me walk behind them so he made me walk in between the two of them. I couldn't blame him either. I was actually kind of happy I was between them. That way, no one would be able to take me away again. I was sure to make it back to Katsu. Everyone in town turned to look at us as we passed. I couldn't even image how odd we looked.

The second we were out of the towns gates I glanced over my shoulder to see if we were being followed. I felt insecure knowing that Hayato and his men could sneak up on me without me being able to sense their chakra. My mind seemed fogged as I walked forward. Kakuzu's and Hidan's chakra was acting like a drug. Everything was out of focus. My hands were trembling.

"_Focus_," Zetsu's smooth voice purred in the back of my head.

My skin broke out in goosebumps, shivers running down my skin. I couldn't stop my knees from quivering or every nerve in my body from going numb. The feeling resonated directly to my core. I tried hard to shove away the feeling—whatever was happening to me—but I knew Zetsu's chakra would have already felt it. I knew he was going to speak again before I even heard his voice.

"_**Don't make them angry**_."

I wanted to ask why. I wanted to know how he seemed to know what was going on even though he wasn't here. I wanted to ask him to explain everything to me. Yet I knew he wouldn't tell me. Part of me knew that even if I tried he wouldn't answer me back. It was like listening to a conversation about a surprise and not being able to ask who it was for or when it was going to happen.

I shook my head, ridding myself of these thoughts. I didn't need them right now.

My ears suddenly started to burn. Jumping, I looked over at Hidan to see him staring at me. His purple eyes were slightly discomforting. "What?" I asked, holding his gaze.

"You almost passed out," he stated as if commenting about the weather.

I shook my head. "Just making sure we weren't being followed and scouting up ahead," I murmured, the lies still rolling like honey off my tongue.

From the corner of my eye I saw him glare at me and then turn back forward. To block out the fact I was once again at the mercy for people I didn't know, I pulled picture of Katsu into my head, memories of when I met him and his beautiful smile. If I didn't know better I would say that I was almost getting used to being at the mercy of others.

All three of us walked in silence through the woods. I tried my hardest to ignore them and they didn't seem to have a problem ignoring me. It was a mutual dislike. I closed my eyes, sucking in what bits of sunlight managed to peak down between the lush green leaves of the trees and enjoyed the peaceful noises of the woods. I would never get tired of that sound.

"First Goddamn time I'm out of the base and I have to do this stupid mission. This is so boring!" Hidan whined.

"Shut up."

Hidan laughed looking over at Kakuzu. I instantly tuned in making sure that I wasn't going to be caught up in any fight. "Eh? That's right! You're just mad you can't go bounty hunting. Sucks to be you don't it," he tormented.

_He's a bounty hunter?_ I thought in surprise. Stealing a glanced at Kakuzu I looked him over once: strong, bulky-ish, showed no emotions besides anger and boredom—I could definitely see it. It didn't take long for me to piece it together that it meant Kakuzu hunted people down, killed them, and took them in for a reward. If I was preventing him from doing that then it was no wonder he seemed to hate my guts more than usual. No one who valued their lives ever got on the bad side of a bounty hunter.

"If you don't shut you mouth then I'm going to make you carry her. I'm sure your damn Jashin would love that," he snapped.

That seemed to be enough to shut him up, but it definitely caught my attention. "Carry me?"

Before I even realized I had asked out loud Kakuzu turned towards me. My face must have made his day.

"Leader-sama says you're not allowed to be conscious when we get close to base so you don't run off."

Before I could even protest there was a sharp pain in the back of my neck. I fell down to the ground, my whole world going black.

* * *

><p>Two things became very clear the moment a bolt of lightning struck my heart: everything was white and everything hurt. My heart leaped up into my throat, my blood burning in my veins. Solid white shapes obscured my sight as my eyes burst open and a wheezing gasp filled my lungs. Not even a moment after the white began to fade did an unbearable weight crush against my chest. My eyelids crashed down heavier than lead. As I sucked in another pained breath my lungs caught fire, burning through my body hotter than embers, ripping through my arms and legs, tearing apart my flesh. It wasn't possible, the pain. It couldn't be real. The fire blazed hotter and hotter. I couldn't breathe.<p>

My eyes exploded open through the pain. This time I could see more. Black rocky walls and black cloaks. People whispering quietly, someone moving. Something holding my arms and my legs in the fire. The burning, blazing fire. Again I tried to suck in another breath. They were burying me in the flames chewing through my heart, spreading through my body with impossible pain, scalding my throat, and burning my eyes. Arching my back, I pulled at the restraints. I was burning.

There was a sudden splash of cold water, shooting through me. Gasping I jerked up, nearly breaking through my restraints. The cause of the pain, the mind numbing pain suddenly left. For a brief second I could breath. Then just as soon as I found the will power to focus it was back again.

"Hold her still!" a voice snapped. I couldn't think.

Two hands grabbed my shoulders, shoving my roughly on the ground. My eyes shot open but I couldn't see through the mind blowing pain. Desperately I reached out with my chakra, pulling at the persons, anything to make it stop, anything to make the pain go away. Dark, controlling chakra shot through me, bubbling and quenching the fire.

Quickly the hands pulled away. As the pain rushed back over me I let out a scream lashing out with my chakra around me in a wild gust. Breaks. Snaps. Everything in the room suddenly crashed and all of the pain fell down into a dull throb.

"What the _fucking hell_!" a voice shrieked.

I jerked upright, doubling over in pain at the explosion of pain shooting through my chest. Grimacing I cradled my arms around me, snapping my head towards whoever was there. As my eyes gradually came into focus I made out six figures in the room. None of them were the any of the three people I didn't seem to find in this organization. My eyes instinctively moved to Zetsu, the only one I could somewhat read. His face was hard. Then it hit me that was _his_ chakra I stole to stop the pain.

"Oi! Amaya-chan's awake. That was so scary!" Tobi shouted somewhere in the room. A sharp _thwack_ told me someone smacked him over the head. "Owie! That was mean Zetsu-san."

"What's going on?" I hissed cringing at the unexpected pinch speaking brought to my chest.

Pein stepped forward his form cracking and dancing around as another hologram. "Your sternum was shattered and a couple of ribs were broken when you passed out—"

"When I _passed out_! What do you mean when I passed out? I didn't do shit when I passed out. I—You!" I snarled turning towards Hidan. "You!" Rock shot up from the ground snaring his legs and squeezing until he gave out a cry. I could feel the burning desire to strangle him, to make him feel that pain. "You did that!"

"_**Don't**_," Zetsu ordered. My head whipped towards him seeing if he dared to speak, but he showed no sign of moving his lips. "_Let him go_."

Shivers broke out over my skin realizing he was speaking to me in my head again. It was enough to distract me from my anger. The earth fell silently back down into the flat cave floor again. A ghost of a smirk spread across Zetsu's face. I ground my teeth, hating the fact he had controlled me even if it was through shock.

"Konan was healing you," Pein finished as if there had never been a disruption.

"Healing?"

I moved to stand up but the crushing pain in my chest knocked me over again. Gasping I dipped in with my own chakra to see what that woman did to me. To my horror she did heal my sternum, crushing and pinching nearly every overlapping muscle in the process. Every time I moved I needed to shift my chest causing the muscles to pull on the weak bone, stretching and tearing everything. The only thing she did healing me was make it ten times worse.

"Zetsu come here," I barked, placing one of my hands over my chest.

The air in the room suddenly shifted. I could tell by their chakras I said something I shouldn't have. Zetsu stared at me, not moving.

"I only know your chakra here," I explained glancing awkwardly at all of the eyes that had locked suspiciously on me. "I'm healing myself."

Again the atmosphere returned back to the same isolated hatred. I made a mental note not to show any favoritism to any of the members and to look up why that seemed to bother them so much. They couldn't possibly be thinking there was an alternative motive behind me calling him forward. Zetsu stepped forward silently. I held out my hand towards him expectantly, closing my eyes and turning my attention back to my chest. I would need to break my sternum again.

All of my focus was lost as Zetsu's cool hand slid into mine. His skin was like ice. Shivers and tremors ran down my spine, the hairs on the back of my neck standing up straight as a jolt of electricity surged between our hands. Maybe if I had my eyes open I would have been able to see the look on Zetsu's face that gave away I wasn't the only person feeling something. His hand did tense in mine giving me a strange sense of satisfaction.

Refocusing I had to insert some of my chakra into the base of his palm to open his chakra gates, but unlike last time he didn't flinch or jerk away.

With a quiet whimper I used his chakra like a hammer to shatter my sternum again. I squeezed his hand tightly to keep from making noise, but his hand remained relaxed in mine. Quickly I healed all of the muscles and tendons in the area before going back and carefully healing myself again. If I kept breaking things like this my body was going to give out. I was going to kill Hidan when I got a hold of him and teach him a lesson or two about the proper way to knock someone out, without breaking their bones. The second I had healed my chest I moved my hand down to heal my ribs.

By the time I opened my eyes again and dropped Zetsu's hand everyone was staring at me. I gulped self-consciously, searching again for the one face I wanted to see even though I already knew that he wasn't going to be there. Standing alone made me feel so out of place here. And I was.

"Where's Katsu?"

Pein's eyes narrowed. A heavy weight fell on my chest. I couldn't even bring myself down to think the worst. "His whereabouts are to none of your concern anymore."

_This is ridiculous,_ I muttered to myself, putting the emotionless mask I had gotten so used to these past months. _At least he's safe for now. None of my concern means he's not dead._

I sat up straighter looking around at everyone, hoping to see a trace in their eyes of why I was here. There was no way everyone would be—forced, no doubt—to come down just to see Konan try and heal me. But everyone's faces were hidden, either bored out of their minds or staring blankly down at me. It was that that made me realize I was still on the ground. Flushing, I stood quickly.

"I need to talk to you about your healing," Pein stated calmly. "I don't think you're aware yet that you are using a forbidden technique only particular members of the Hirokosai Clan can perform."

I nearly opened my mouth to ask what he meant by a forbidden technique, narrowly stopping myself. After a second I nearly laughed at the thought. All medical ninjas could heal themselves and others around them. There was nothing different about how I healed them.

"Your mother performed the same forbidden jutsu," he continued. "Most healing techniques use green chakra to heal people, chakra from the person's body. When you heal someone, as you just did your chakra is blue." I'd never thought about that. "It's because of this that your father entrusted you to be the Holder."

My mask never cracked, but inside I was panicking. His large purple ringed eyes stared through me, into my soul seeing and shredding everything. My hands started to tremble. So many things ran through my head. My mom used the same technique I did. I was like her, part of her. A small smile crossed my lips for a moment, but I quickly hid it stealing a glance to see if anyone saw. If I was really like my mother and used a forbidden jutsu that only handful of people could do maybe that was why Hayato really wanted me. Maybe it didn't have to do with the Akatsuki at all. As I thought about it I realized that might be the reason _they_ wanted me.

And he knew. Pein knew I was entrusted as the Holder, just like Hayato did. Did everybody know? Was I just blissfully unaware and ignorant about myself? In my head I ran through every possibility of how he might have found out, every chance and every detail. It was supposed to be a secret I was the Holder. The only way he could have found out was if…. My eyes shot up to meet his light lilac eyes with several purple rinds circling the pupil: Rinnegan.

_I think I'm going to be sick_, I thought my stomach clenching. Underneath me my knees threatened to give out. Zetsu shifted forward, an uncomfortable look on the white half of is face.

"How do you know about that?"

If the large loose collar of his cloak didn't cover his mouth I would have sworn I saw him smile, even if he was just a hologram. An inevitable shiver broke down my spine. "I know much more than you can imagine."

I turned my head abruptly to Tobi. I didn't know how but I knew that he had a part in this somehow. He had to.

"Can we go now? This is boring?" Hidan whined, swinging his scythe over his shoulder in an intimidating fashion. "And my feet are fucking killing me from that long-ass walk."

"Leave," Pein ordered.

"Finally," he breathed.

I watched numbly as both Kakuzu and Hidan left the room, neither glancing back. Zetsu and Tobi both stood still with Konan's hologram flickering behinds Pein's. We stood in silence no one talking. I shifted awkwardly.

"Zetsu will be showing you to your room. You're training will resume where it left off," Pein informed me finally.

I didn't dare nod or acknowledge he spoke to me, still to proud to show him any type of obedience. Instead I turned towards the door and showed myself out. The footsteps following behind me told me that Zetsu was following. Out of reflex I turned right, my mind too heavy with new information to think straight.

A sharp tug on the back of my shirt cut into my throat. Fuming I turned around coming face to face with a two large pupil-less yellow eyes. "What?" I growled.

"Yo_u're going the wrong direction baka_," his white half snorted. He didn't bother taking his hand off my shoulder. I stared at him hard, not getting it. "_**This isn't the same base**__,_" his other half informed.

Curiously I glanced around looking over the dark walls with stalagmites and stalactites jutting out everywhere, single candles on the dark rock walls to light where. I did a double-take realizing I wasn't seeing this place at all. I looked closer. There wasn't any rock, anywhere. Instead of the cold slick floor it was concrete, the walls some type of metal by the looks of it. The candles weren't candles at all, they were small lights. The only thing this base had in common with the last one was the menacing auras that coated everything.

"You guys have more than one base?"

"_We have them all over the nations._ _**Do you really think we're stupid enough to only have one?**_"

"Well fine," I frowned, shaking off his hand. "I'll find my way on my own then!"

"_No_," he replied instantly. "_**Why not? She wants to go walk around the base blindly then let her!**_ _We were ordered to show her to her room._"

Ignoring both sides completely I stormed off, trying desperately to ignore the bubbling energy that was rising in my chest. It was like water, flowing and moving my inside the pit of my stomach just building and building until it was going to blow I could feel everything going into it.

There was a flutter of his cloak before I saw him. Growling I reached up to punch his face, right where I knew he would stop. With inhuman reflexes his caught my fist, inches from his face. "_**Don't you even think about it**_," he hissed.

"And what is it you think I'm thinking?" I snarled.

"_You thinking about finding him._"

I bit the inside of my cheek. It had to be a lucking guess. "Finding who?"

"_**Don't play stupid**_."

Sighing I let my arm relax. For a moment he hesitated, his large hand consuming mine before he appeared to decide I wasn't going to try and hit him again. Slowly, he let go of my hand, allowing my arm to fall back down to my side. I stared down at my feet. Inside I felt Zetsu's chakra shift. I recoiled, nearly forgetting about the foreign alien inside me. Seeing how we were alone now though I decided it couldn't hurt to ask. "What in the world did you put inside me?"

The Venus flytrap on his shoulders moved closing enough that I could really only make out the dark side of his face, but I saw it if only for a brief moment. A light pink tint had rose onto his white cheek. Zetsu was blushing. Everything in my mind seemed to shut down. I couldn't… I couldn't even comprehend what I just saw.

"_It's a spore_."

I shifted. "A spore?"

"_**It allows me to steal chakra and give it to others**__ or communicate telepathically with someone_," he continued the Venus flytrap daring to open up more. The weight of his gaze was almost unbearable. "_It only activates when I want it to_," he added seeing the look on my face yet his voice never even changed.

"So…"—I paused looking for the right words. My mind seemed reluctant to comply though thinking only of what the point of a spore was—"you're saying that you put a spore in me so you could take my chakra? Why didn't you just take me with you when you touched me? Wouldn't that have been easier?"

"_**If I tried to take you with me you would have been attacked by him. It was safer to make sure you weren't killed**__._" He cringed his eyes misting over for a moment. After a second I realized he had started to argue with himself in his head over something.

I watched him curiously, fiddling with the hem of my shirt awkwardly. Anyone could walk down the hallway at any second now to see us standing here, him arguing inside his head and me probably looking like I was drug through the forest. Something told me being caught alone with Zetsu wouldn't be good. Looking around, I reached out with my chakra, letting in inch down the surrounding hallways tasting and feeling everything close. No one was around.

_So he did it to keep me safe?_ The question lingered in my head for a moment. Zetsu's chakra continued to swirl and move sending goosebumps over my skin. I had never been concerned about what he could really tell from it before but by the way it moved I felt like there was something Zetsu wasn't telling me about this spore. Maybe he hadn't needed to be close enough to see what was happening because he knew through his spore. Maybe he could see what I saw, feel what I feel. He could be learning everything about me.

Apprehensive, I cleared my throat, bringing him back from his thoughts. Carefully I struggled to find the right words. "How were you able to tell I was in trouble and know what to say to me?"

The Venus flytrap twitched a little closer together, but for the second time I could have sworn I saw a faint blush cross his white half. It was the only answer I needed.

Mortified, I realized that he was able to see something inside me, whether it was how I felt, my thoughts, or even what I saw, he _knew_ something. Suddenly I remembered all of the times I had thought about him while I had this spore inside of me. Embarrassment flooded through me making my knees weak and my stomach churn. Quickly and decisively I reached in with my own chakra cutting it off. The thought that he could know how I felt, how he made me feel … I trembled. The second it separated from my chakra network it withered into nothing.

Zetsu's head jerked up, his wide eyes staring into me.

I opened my mouth to say something, to explain, but found I couldn't find the words with the heavy flush blocking the blood to my brain. To even think that he could know how strongly I reacted when I heard his voice when I was with Kakuzu and Hidan was too much to take. My mind simply went dead.

"Thank you," I mumbled finally, seeing he wasn't going to speak. "For protecting me or whatever you were doing." I broke eye-contact with him, unable to take the strange feeling it brought in the pit of my stomach. I looked around briefly before palming the back of my neck. "Can you please show me to Katsu's room now?"

A grin spread across his face showing off his long white teeth. Turning around he started off down the opposite hallway. "_Follow me_."


	17. Everybody Has A Dirty Little Secret

**AN:** Today at lunch when I was sitting with a group of my friends I left to go grab some pizza and I come back and all of the sudden I see one of my friends - a girl - standing in front of the table dancing like crazy. I stop for a second to watch and then she sits back down like nothing happened and no one even said anything. Another girl was saying how she felt she didn't have a life because all she watched were things like Mulan Rouge. I never realized I have such odd friends...

Anyway, hope you enjoy this. Please read and review. I'm missing all my reviews... :'(

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 17<strong>

**Everybody Has A Dirty Little Secret  
><strong>

I didn't bother to ask where we were going as we turned down endless hallways or even bothered to record it to my photographic memory. There was no reason. For some strange reason right now I felt like I trusted Zetsu. Besides, when I got to Katsu's room I would always be able to use Sarnik to memorize this base and think of what I needed to do. Until then, I let my eyes wonder aimlessly taking in everything around me.

This base seemed larger than the last one, a considerable feat. As Zetsu turned, leading up up various cases of stairs I concluded we were in some type of building, a very tall metal building at that. The walls were well lit and the floors echoed under out feet, but there were actually furniture sets and decorations scattered throughout the hallways giving me the impression this place was used as more than simply a headquarters for the Akatsuki. My mind was too blank to consider what that meant. After all of the emotional turmoil I had gone through there wasn't anything left to feel. I was numb. A shell of myself. Burnt out.

Zetsu came to such a sudden halt in front of me I ran into his hard back. With a grunt, I rubbed my forehead, peeking through one eye up at him. Standing this close to him only reminded me of how tall he really was, nearly an entire head taller than me. He gave me a strange expression before stepping aside. "Sorry," I mumbled feeling my face heat up.

"_Here's your room._" His yellow eyes stared into me as I turned to protest, leaving no room for argument. "_**Don't try and run away this time**_."

"Whatever," I grumbled. He was supposed to take me to Katsu's room, not my room. Not that it would really matter. I would always be able to sneak out and find it later tonight. None of them would ever have to know.

A smirk crossed his face only making my frown grow more, but I ignored him. Opening my door I was about to walk in when a solid force rammed into me. The unexpected force caused me to stumbled back and I might have even fell if it wasn't for Zetsu's hand on my back stabilizing me. Raising my arms instinctively I nearly brought my arm down, ready to attack but I froze seeing two light olive green eyes peeking out underneath his shaggy pitch black hair. "K-Katsu?" I stuttered shocked.

"About time you got here Nee-chan!" he laughed, pulling me tighter into a hug. Slowly my guard crashed down and I let my arms wrap around him, burying his face in my bosom and pulling him as tight to me as I could.

Turning my head back to Zetsu I paused, not sure what to say. His hand slowly fell away, leaving an empty feeling in my chest but no matter how hard I tried I couldn't think what this meant. Finally I said, "I thought you said this was my room."

He grinned showing off his long white predatory teeth for half a second before it was gone, his emotionless mask back up. I studied his black and white face for a long moment, taking in everything from the lightness in his golden eyes to the small quirk in his cheek that was proof of his smile. With a second of hesitation he turned, his cloak billowing out behind him and he simply walked down the hall. I could still hear his voice though as clear as day as he said. "_**I did**_."

I stared hard at his back too shocked to even realize what just happened.

"Hey! Hey! Amaya-chan!" Katsu called, tugging anxiously to on the hem of my shirt.

Snapping out of my daze I turned back to him, smiling a real for real for the first time in what felt like days. For the first time I noticed that his face had refilled since the last time I had seen him, only a couple traces of bruises on his cheek. Someone had been feeding him more. His naturally pale skin had regained a little color and his eyes … his eyes shone brightly. I didn't even know what to think as I looked at him, seeing the same—despite a more mature-looking—boy I loved. Someone had been taking care of him.

"Yeah?" I laughed, unable to ignore the child-like expression on his face.

"Nee-chan," he whined, tugging repeatedly on my shirt. "Let go! I have to show you something!"

Reluctantly I let him out of my grasp as he ran back into _our_ room, dragging me anxiously with him. This room wasn't too much larger than my last room, only with enough space for another single bed and slightly more space to walk around. There was yet again another door leading out of it that I took to be a bathroom since a dresser and desk were both in the room too. The strangest part however was the fact I had a window, a real honest to God window on the far side of the room that looked out over a large metal city with a crying sky. It was beautiful.

I noticed strangely that all of the furniture had been moved out of the way, pressed sloppily to one half of the room to make one large space.

"What's this?" I looked around, gratefully to see that there were enough candles in the room to light it. As reassuring as it was to know that Pein trusted me with a window now I didn't want to rely on his trust in order to see all of the time. Yet instead of candles, I noticed there was one light switch by the door and the florescent lights in the ceiling. This place had electricity. "What have you done to the place?"

Katsu grinned stupidly at me, bouncing on the balls of his feet. "I moved it so I can train."

_Train,_ I thought snapping my attention back to where Katsu was nearly giggling in joy. Panicking I looked all over him, looking for any sign that he might be hurt or something was wrong. All I could see where strangely new muscles that looked like they had popped out of nowhere. There wasn't a single sign that he had been forced to go through the same type of training I had but I didn't let that thought reassure me. "You've been training?"

Crestfallen his smile faltered a second. "You didn't notice?"

Rolling my eyes I poked his arms and stomach, feeling what my eyes couldn't see. He _had_ been training. "You think I wouldn't notice you trained? Of course I noticed the muscles but I mean _what_ have you been training?"

The goofy grin fell right back on his face. "That's what I want to show you!"

Judging by the look on his face I plopped down on the nearest bed, motioning for him to continue. He grinned closing his eyes clasping his hands together in a traditional fashion in front of him. In the next second he turned, walked straight up to the wall and stepped up. I didn't blink as I watched him walk up the side of the room. Cautiously I reached out with my chakra feeling if he was stable, but I couldn't find a single thing wrong as I came in contact with his light chakra. All of it had been centered at his feet like it should have been.

"What do you think?" he prodded grinning widely at me.

"When did you…?"

"Remember?" He stepped down off the wall bouncing over to sit on the bed cross-legged. "You told me about it when we were first kidnapped, said it was called chakra control. So since I've had nothing better to do I've been practicing!"

I couldn't resist it. I pulled him into my lap hugging him tight as I leaned back against the headboard. He laughed but didn't resist. He knew I liked to be close and touchy. Absentmindedly I fiddled with his hair, twirling and raking my fingers through it while I let my mind wonder on what had really been on my mind. Right now I shoved the pure ecstasy of seeing Katsu and forced myself to think.

Katsu squirmed as my finger brushed behind his ear making me laugh. "_Nee-chan_," he whined.

"Relax. It's feels like forever since I've seen you." I chewed on my lips a moment. "Who's been taking care of you?" I asked casually.

"Oh!" He shifted to where he could see me. I let my hands fall down to my sides. "Tobi's been taking care of me." He made a sour face. "He's … weird, but … I like him. He would talk about you sometimes and tell me that you were okay."

"Really?"

"Yeah," Katsu paused looking for the right words. The sight was so rare it almost made me laugh—Katsu thinking. "He's … different."

Slipping back into my thoughts I pulled him back into me. "Yeah," I mumbled. He squirmed around getting comfortable before letting me mess with his hair again. "More than you know…"

We sat in silence for a moment. I could sense something was on Katsu's mind before he said anything but I waited until he was ready, thinking for a moment about Tobi. He knew. I knew he saw that I figured out he had been hiding his chakra. I knew he was hiding something and that me knowing about it wasn't any secret. Now he took care of Katsu, actually taking care of him and giving him what he wanted and suddenly I'm in the same room with Katsu. It seemed impossible this all happened because of chance. Tobi didn't want me telling anyone I knew he was a fake.

"Amaya-chan?" I mumbled incoherently letting him know he had my attention. "Promise me everything's going to be okay."

Frowning I took my time before answering raking my hands through his hair slowly. He sat up, looking down at me, his eyes a dark ocean blue. Grabbing his hand I kissed his palm tenderly before placing it on my cheek. I smiled. "I promise. Everything's going to be okay."

He smiled sadly, nuzzling back into me. I pulled him close squeezing my eyes shut. If only I make sure everything was going to be okay. Knowing I was going to regret this I took a deep breath. "And starting tomorrow I'll start training you _only_ if you promise to do whatever I say."

Bouncing up he stared open-mouth at me. "Are you serious?"

"Yep."

"Does this mean that I can call you Sensei now?"

"…Don't push your luck."

* * *

><p>I couldn't say how long I stayed up staring blankly at the ceiling. I only knew when Katsu fell asleep curled into my side, his soft snores the only thing that filled the room. All I could think about was what to come. And I stayed that way, gazing mindlessly at the ceiling until dawn.<p>

So many questions ran around in my head. Why would anyone suddenly take care of Katsu when the last time I was here I had tried to escape? Was this all some type of ploy to get me to work for them instead of me making them twist my arm every time they wanted me to do something? There was no other logical reason that anyone would do this. Not even Tobi would go out of his way to take care of Katsu. And if that was all that they wanted what was it exactly that they wanted me to do for them? Could this really still only be about the jinjurican?

Lots of rumors always flew around the village back at home. The Takeshimiko Clan was known for the war and battle strategies. They used to always be the Clan that the five major villages would turn to for military help during a war so naturally Takeshimiko knew all of the secrets: secrets including how the villages were collecting the tailed beasts to protect the villages and how they were supposedly sealing them inside human hosts, jinjuricans. I had no doubt that every little detail of those stories was true, but I couldn't quite see how the Akatsuki was going to use the jinjuricans.

If they wanted the strength of the tailed beasts then they would have to find a way to convince all of the jinjuricans to work for them instead of hold their allegiance with their village. Or they would have to find a way to remove the tailed beasts without releasing them and find a way to seal them inside someone else.

_Why would they go through all of that trouble after making me find them?_ The question taunted me in my head. I knew it was one of the key pieces to why they would want me on their good graces. Pein would have to be the dumbest man on the planet if he didn't realize Katsu's life came before anything else to me. _And why Tobi of all people?_

Tobi. A picture of the strange man floated up into my mental eye. That was another thing I needed to figure out. I needed to know who Tobi really was and how much power he really was hiding behind that mask of his. If he was really as strong as I thought he was everything about him could possibly be a lie. Someone with that much power could make anyone believe anything they wanted to.

The obvious reason of why Pein would make Tobi take care of Katsu was easy: Tobi was the only one that was A) carefree enough to take care of a child and B) not as bloodthirsty or evil as the rest of the members. But why have him take care of him at all? Was it really as simple as they wanted to try to be nice to see if I would return the favor?

What would happen after I killed Hayato anyways? Would they simply just let me go?

No, there was no way they could risk the secrecy and safety of their organization by letting me go even if I promised not to talk. I would be a liability. Katsu would to. We would have to stay here forever, stuck with the mass of bloodthirsty murderers. No, probably not even that. They would probably kill us.

The fact that they want me to kill Hayato was most likely important as well. There's always a reason for killing someone and I had a big feeling there was a lot more to it than Hayato was just a threat to them. He was probably undermining them. Fighting them for what they wanted. Bad business. But then what did the Akatsuki really want? My mind flickered to the jinjurican, but I dismissed the idea after a long thought. It had to be something bigger, something that they would be willing to die for. The jinjurican had to lead to something larger.

But what?

All of that brought my mind spinning right back to the original question, going around and around in my head trying to think at every angle for what I was missing. It was maddening. Everything was going around one piece of information I didn't know. I could _feel_ it. But what was it?

Two lazy knocks brought me out of my trance.

I blinked, rubbing my face groggily. Carefully I looked down at Katsu. I smiled seeing his face still buried in my shirt. Gingerly I slipped out from under him, making sure not to wake him up. Silently I slipped into a long form fitting tank top and a change of ninja pants, strapping on both of my weapon pouches onto my legs seeing as how I had lost my last cloak on my last mission. Almost as if on second thought I double checked to see if I still wore my necklace.

Two more knocks at the door caught my attention. They weren't like Zetsu's knocks so in my head I placed them as Kisame's. Grinning I kissed Katsu's forehead before slipping out of the door.

When I turned around I saw the same razor sharp toothed grin of Kisame. His smile turned into a smirk when his eyes fell on me. "Didn't sleep much?" he laughed.

I smiled stiffly trying not to think about last night. Instead a tingling sensation built up uncomfortably in my stomach with a mix of satisfaction. I couldn't help but think about the last time I had seen him. My eyes scanned over him quickly, looking for any lingering signs of our last fight, but everything about his large massive form seemed to be in top shape. His sword Samehada wiggled on his back as it felt my chakra. "I'm not going to have to fight you again today am I?" I asked, blowing off his question.

He turned heading down the hallway. I quickly trailed after him, attempting to match his insanely long, slow strides. "Scared?"

"Only of beating you again."

His body shook violently making me grin. Echo's of his roaring laughter bounced off of the walls letting my mind relax. I didn't feel the need to keep too alert as I let him lead me down endless hallways. I slipped down into rest already feeling my body dragging. I had never been too good at staying up for long amounts of time without sleep.

My eyes shot open as four cruel chakras hit my senses, faint at first, but definitely there. They mixed, leaking and running over everything, coating everything in an eerie feeling, something murderous and brutal. A sharp sense of Kakuzu assaulted me but there was something else, almost like sandstone and earth mixed in along with fire. The very presence of all of the chakra in one spot was suffocating and unbearable. Freezing in place, I clutched at my throat, trying to block my senses from picking it up. Shaking I tried hard to force my senses to shut down, but I was too tired to even think of using anything but my instincts now.

Kisame didn't seem to notice I stopped as he took a few more stepped forward to a door. The hairs on the back of my next prickled up as his hand fell on the door knob. They were in there, all of them. I inched back with a hiss, barely forcing my hands back to my side. My throat felt raw.

"Here we are."

Taking a few deep breaths to steady myself I looked apprehensively at him. Slowly I felt my body adapting. The stench of all of the wretched chakra gradually faded back down to something tolerable. In the back of my head I could still feel it nagging me, but it was weak enough to ignore.

"Breakfast first?" I inquired painfully; the fire in my throat hadn't gone away yet.

"Leader-sama felt that it would be best for you to meet everyone," he explained simply.

I paused staring back at him. "He did?" I gasped in a forced whisper.

"That and I thought you could cook something for us." My mouth fell open, but I quickly closed it. He chuckled.

Kisame looked down at me, holding the door open so I could pass in. For the first time I noticed how tall he really was; I had to crane my neck up to see his face clearly, my head only coming to his chest. I thanked him quietly, shuffling in to my doom. I made sure to keep my head up, moving decisively as if I was untouchable. If only that was the truth.

The second I walked in I felt three pairs of eyes staring at me. I closed my eyes briefly before daring to look at any of them. Tobi was the first person I saw when I opened them. "Oi! Morning Amaya-chan," he saluted merrily. He waved from the back corner of the room where it looked like he had been hovering over two other people, one I recognized as Kakuzu, the other a blonde that I had yet to meet. "I heard you wanted to make breakfast this morning," he chirped.

I glared vehemently at him. "Of course," I spoke smoothly.

Not wanting to see who else was in the room I moved quickly to the kitchen through a door. I let out a sigh sensing someone else in the room immediately.

Two blood red eyes looked over at me: the Sharingan. I cringed, my body chilling over. For a moment I let myself lock eyes, staring hard into his eyes feeling him staring into my head. His coal black hair was pulled back in a low pony tail that was hidden in the back of his cloak, but his long bangs hung down giving his face a cold hard tint. Every inch of my body recoiled and shuttered, feeling his gaze tear through me, but the feeling passed quickly, my mind already have used to the murderous glances that were hidden behind everyone's eyes in the Akatsuki. He had turned back around. I watched silently for a moment noticing the steam rolling up from the kettle in front of him. He was making tea.

_Itachi,_ I thought. Forcing myself to run through the actions of cooking Kappamaki Cucumber rolls, my mind stayed very active on the figure standing feet away from me. _I reaclled the last time I had seen him, after I had hurt his partner. Right then we came to an agreement. It was something odd but I knew I was safe with him._

Neither of us spoke.

The kettle let out a whistle as I laid the rice out on the sheets of nori. Simultaneously he took it off, moving elegantly. I watched him carefully as I placed all of the cucumber sticks down, rolling the nori to make tight rolls. The entire time he made no movement to even recognize I was still in the same room as him. Only when he had poured his tea did he turn back and look in my direction.

I felt the telltale pulse of chakra from him before suddenly all of my senses were dulled and foggy. I looked around the room, noticing everything still looked the same. There was only one difference, the clock on the wall was ticking backwards.

_Genjutsu._

Calmly I looked back towards Itachi, knowing I could cancel his technique if I really wanted to but I held onto the strange sense of comfort he brought me. I watched carefully as he stepped closer, his tea left forgotten on the counter.

"Amaya-san," he spoke. His voice was sinfully smooth and deep, but oddly enough it didn't stir anything inside me at all. I kept my gaze fixed on his crimson red eyes as he came to a stop only a few feet from me.

"Itachi-san," I replied, allowing him control.

"Things are not as they seem here. I know you have gained Kisame's approval, but trust no one here. Especially not Tobi," he warned.

Then with a slight push I felt everything slip back to normal, all of my sense and feelings coming back normally. Out of habit I reached inside myself, checking my own chakra frequency to see if it was normal and that the genjutsu really had ended. Itachi never once looked in my direction as he picked up his tea was walked straight out of the kitchen, his back so straight it looked as though he hadn't slouched a day in his life.

Any idea of what I was actually supposed to be doing in the kitchen was lost as the blondes head suddenly popped in the doorway. I looked blankly at the man. His face was softer than the other members with the way his bangs fell down over his right eye, the rest of his long hair tied up in a high ponytail on his head.

His crystal blue eye met mine for only a brief moment before my gaze fell down to his exposed arm. If I hadn't been forced to be around Zetsu for so long I might have thought twice about it. By the looks of it he had completely lost his entire elbow. The bottom part of his arm seemed to have been sowed by on with a wooden mimic of his original elbow used to connect the two. I caught myself staring after a second and glanced back up at his face, hoping there was an actual reason he was here. I wouldn't be able to take random people staring at me.

"Yes?" I offered seeing that he appeared to be at a loss for words.

Jerking violently he blinked. "Hey, un. Is our food ready yet?" he asked. Placing his voice in my memory I decided not to comment on how light it seemed compared to the bark everyone else had. If I didn't know better I wouldn't even say this person was really part of the Akatsuki.

Sighing I ignored him and turned back to my nearly done Kappamaki Cucumber rolls. "It's not nice to ignore people, un," he frowned. Judging by the footsteps echoing behind me he had came in.

I checked quickly in all of the closest draws for a knife to cut the nori into rolls, but all of them were bare. Frowning I checked the sink. There was nothing. _Well that sucks,_ I grumbled.

Chancing a glance back at the blonde I decided it wouldn't hurt if I showed him some of my abilities. The chances were that Pein had already told all of them about what I could do. Calling on my chakra in both of my palms I reached out touching the wall. With my other hand I placed my index and thumb together before focusing on anything metal in the wall. After a moment I slowly pulled my two fingers apart, forming a metal tube. Once it was several inches long I stopped and called on my fire chakra, heating up the metal and smoothing it into a make-shift blade with my fingers. The hot metal didn't even burn my skin.

I pulled back looking at my handwork for a moment. It wasn't that bad. By no means would it win any contest but it would be good enough to cut the Kappamaki Cucumber into rolls.

The blonde stepped forward into my peripheral vision. I tensed glancing over at his curious face. "My name's Deidara, un," he stated blankly.

I tried hard not to look over at him. Something told me I shouldn't really be talking to the blonde, but that didn't seem to stop his obvious curiosity with me—at least I hoped that it was curiosity.

The unmistakable aura of Tobi bounced happily in the room with his usual, "Oi! Amaya-chan! Dei-sempai!"

"I'm not your Sempai!"

My attention was brought instantly to the orange masked man remembering what Katsu had told me and Itachi's warning only a second ago. "Breakfast is ready," I stated, slicing all of them quickly and leaving the room. Tobi cheered, chasing after me while Deidara mumbled trailing behind us. The second I set the plate full of Kappamaki Cucumber rolls down I turned abruptly towards the door and walked out.

"Not hungry?" Kisame laughed, apparently thinking I was too embarrassed from cooking them breakfast to join them.

"Lost my appetite," I muttered.

The moment I walked out of the door I ran face first into someone's chest. Recoiling back I prepared myself mentally for any type of reaction as I saw Hidan's glaring face looking down at me. "What where you're going," he growled, shoving me aside to get to the kitchen.

"Sorry," I mumbled pinching the bridge of my nose.

All of my senses were starting to muddle together in one giant blob of a migraine behind the back of my forehead. Staying with a group of S-Class blood-thirsty criminals couldn't be any more stressful. Every waking second I had to worry about one of them cutting off my head because they were bored. Then again, I realized, what was I thinking it would be like living with them? Mumbling to myself I wondered mindlessly through the hallways back to my room.

I didn't even get halfway there before I froze in the middle of the hallway. Not even four feet in front of me two enormous Venus flytrap leaves were sprouting form the side of the wall, followed quickly after my shoulders and the flowing cloud patterned cloak I was too familiar with. Once Zetsu's foot touched the ground he turned towards me, quickly wiping what I could guess as blood off of his chin.

"H-Hey Zetsu-san," I gasped as the heavy stench of blood wafted over to me. My empty stomach gurgled twisting into knots.

He nodded, eying me curiously. I grinned suddenly I could finally read his expression now. He looked me over once before glancing around. "_**You should be training**__._ _Why are you standing here?"_

My excuse was feeling lamer by the second. "Lost my appetite."

A smirk I had never seen before crossed his face for a brief moment before the rough, deep voice shouted, "_**No**__!_" Instantly the smirk feel off his face and I could tell that both of his personalities had retreated back into his mind to debate something unknown. I stared blankly back at him.

_Was he yelling at me?_

I shifted awkwardly, not sure if I should turn and head back to the kitchen where all of the other blood-thirsty criminals were or to risk standing with the one guy that talked to himself and ate people. After a brief hesitation I shifted my weight from one foot to the other, waiting out-of-place for Zetsu to come to some type of decision in my mind. It was starting to really dawn on me how often his two sides must disagree with each other.

"_I'll show you to the training room_," his white half snapped suddenly.

I drew back from the venom dripping from every word, gulping. Shivers raced down my spine. This time when my stomach flopped painfully in my stomach I knew it wasn't because I was hungry. In my head a flash of him last night popped up. I shook his violent mood swings off due to his two personalities.

As if suddenly thinking of something his sour expression changed. Stepping forward he pulled out several large, thick scrolls. Most of them were a faded yellow, but a select few were still crisp and white. I looked wearily at them. "_Leader-sama wishes me to give these to you __**so that you can locate the jinjurican**__._"

"Right," I mumbled gingerly taking all of the scrolls.

For a brief moment our fingers touched. An electric shock shot down my spine sending shivers racing up into my brain. His hand jerked back slightly, nearly causing a couple scrolls to fall, but stopped suddenly. His two yellow eyes bored down on me through his Venus flytrap studying me too close. Heat rose to my cheeks.

"I-Is this all?" I stuttered slightly, not sure whether or not to look up at him and meet those staring eyes I just knew were watching my every move.

He was silent for a moment. My eyes were glued solely to the bottom of his cloak as if seeing the way it brushed against the ground was the coolest thing in the world. Even without looking at him through I could still see the way his chest shifted forward slightly, his hips turning as if he was going to walk past me. All the weight and pressure in my mind moments before fell heavy on my chest making it harder to breathe. The smell of blood was still thick in the air.

"_**Yes. Follow me**_," his dark half demanded as he easily brushed past me, the edges of his cloak tickling against my side. I shuttered, obeying mindlessly.

Training was the same as I remembered. The second Zetsu dropped me off both I had noticed Tobi in the corner of the very large room, just as he always was only this time Deidara was over there with him, sitting as far away from both as possible. My eyes lingered on Zetsu's back as he walked over to join Tobi, his posture rigid and closed off, but no matter how long I looked after him he didn't even glance back at me. Finally I let out a sigh, giving up.

Without needing to be told I began trying to control my unique powers. I walked to the center of the room dipping in and reaching for the bubbling energy inside of me. It took a little longer than normal to find it since I hadn't had a chance to use my strength in days. Eventually I found the slight barrier to my powers and eased it open. The rushing energy flowed through me, washing and soothing ever inch of me. The migraine I had earlier vanished and I could feel my sore muscle relaxing.

When I opened my eyes it looked like the world had stopped. I smiled, glancing around the room. Deidara was frozen in mid-hit, his target none other than the bouncing Tobi that appeared to have been pestering. Zetsu gaze was fixed on me.

Now here was the snag. I frowned. How was I was supposed to train myself when there wasn't a single person that could keep up with my attacks?

After a second I finally crouched down and broke out in a full sprint. My feet flew underneath me. Before I knew it I was faced with the wall, but instead of changing courses I jumped once, landing up on the wall and sprinting straight up the wall. I laughed, giggling as the energy surged through me. Eagerly I pushed myself harder, turning whichever I felt as I ran across the ceiling, the walls, and around the room. I ran and ran until there was nothing else I could do, pushing myself as hard as I could.

I couldn't say how long I ran or how many laps I made around the room before I started to feel the strain in my legs and chest. A burning spread from my lungs through my muscles eventually, forcing me to come back down to stop where I started. Never had I ran as hard or as long as I just did and my muscles burned beyond belief. With a groan, I bent over to catch my breath, unable to hold up my enhanced chakra any longer. Everything came crashing back in time.

"Oh God," I groaned, reaching in with what was left of my chakra to heal the burning in my legs. Now it was nearly crippling, forcing me to brace half my weight on my knees. To my horror I realized my muscles actually _had_ burned.

"Done already un?" Deidara called. I could hear the frown in his voice.

I didn't bother looking up, screwing my face up in pain. "H-H-How lo-long has … has it b-been?" I panted.

"Half an hour Amaya-chan!"

_That's all?_ I cried out in my head. My muscles were charred. It felt like I had been sprinting for days, at least hours, not thirty minutes. My eyes snapped open as I realized what happened. The second I used my power time slowed down nearly to a stop and my speed quadrupled, if not more than that. If I was running as fast as I could for thirty minutes in their time I must have been moving my muscles so fast they actually did burn, because after all it wasn't like I actually controlled the time, just my body. I burned myself out.

With a groan, I fell back on the ground, the hard cold metal welcome on my sweaty skin. I let out a hiss at the drastic change of temperatures. Quickly I continued the flow of chakra to my muscles. If I was right, I needed to if I wanted to be able to move in half an hour.

"Leader-sama wants you to find the jinjurican," Deidara announced.

I nodded numbly remembering all of the scrolls that I had roughly shoved into my weapon pouches earlier. They must be full of the names to a couple of the villages them. It must have been Zetsu's job to go get them; that was why he came back covered in the stench of blood.

With a sigh I forced myself to sit up, cringing as my muscles pulled and stretched and pulled out all of the scrolls. With a quick glance over at the three men on the other side of the room I placed my hand over my necklace and called out to my scrolls. "_Eih mitsu-torae._ "

A flood of energy pulsed through me like a waterfall and I nearly moaned in pleasure.

My ears started to burn. Glancing over, I noticed Zetsu was now watching me closely, his Venus flytrap curling open on his shoulders. Tobi also had quit bugging Deidara enough to look over at me. I shifted slightly, uncomfortable under their gazes.

The familiar weight of Sarnik in my hands was welcome. I took my time opening it and set each of the other scrolls next to it. There were eleven total.

_Let the torture begin._

Surprisingly it went a lot faster than I could have imagined. All of the scrolls were from the Village Hidden in the Mist. After only going through one scroll and seeing nameless faces appear on Sarnik with mind-numbing facts and life stories showing up around them I finally found one that wouldn't work.

"Hey! I found one," I announced, drawing the attention of the three Akatsuki members in the room. I grinned triumphantly for the first time. I had never been so happy that Sarnik wouldn't work for something. Hopefully that would mean I was done with this for the day. Even thinking about not having to waste anymore chakra looking up peoples names brought a large smile to my face.

Zetsu stood up abruptly and made his way over. I shrunk back slightly feeling my stomach twist uncomfortably. _Relax Amaya. Relax._ I forced an impassive face and stared firmly at a spot behind on the wall behind his head so it would appear I was looking at him.

"_**Who**__?_"

"Yugito Nii."

"_Do you know what tailed beast she has?_" his white half asked stupidly.

It took all of my willpower not to roll my eyes at him. I barely managed to hold in my laugh. "I can't see her, remember?"

"_Right_," he mumbled the weight of his gaze flickering from my face for a moment. "_**I told you so**_," the rough voice sneered too quietly for it to mean that I was supposed to hear.

Curiously I broke eye-contact with the wall and looked at him. What I saw made my heart flutter up into my throat. I couldn't do anything but stare. The white half of is face was blank. Every emotion had fallen from his face. But his eyes … his eyes were open for the first time filled with so many different thoughts and emotions it couldn't be real. A deep yearning, passion, a hunger and thirst for something I couldn't name, and pain. He was supposed to be a killer, yet when I looked at him I couldn't see anything but the way his golden eyes dulled.

Feeling my gaze his eyes snapped up to mine. Once again his eyes were hard, nothing showing through but anger. I felt myself draw back slightly. His eyes glinted. Without another word he was suddenly gone, melting right into the ground in feet away from me.

"Yay! It's my turn to fight Amaya-chan!" Tobi shouted dancing around wildly next to Deidara. Deidara eyed him wearily glaring.

"No you don't you idiot!" he snapped punching him roughly on the back of his head. Tobi quickly dodged to the side only turning Deidara's face a deep red. "She has to finish finding all of the jinjurican you idiot!"

The kept arguing or at least Deidara did. I concluded very quickly that he loathed Tobi with such a passion nothing would make him happier than killing him over and over again. Tobi on the other hand laughed, teasing and mocking him. I promptly ignored them both my eyes only for Tobi.

This was it. I had my chance.

In the back of my head I vaguely heard Deidara shout, "Take a break, un. We'll get back to it in five ten minutes."

Quickly I removed the seal to Sarnik, rubbing my fingers along the old scroll for a moment. In my head I quickly locked the picture of Tobi in my head, thinking of the way his orange swirling mask hid his face, even the one exposed eye shadowed over unseen. I thought only about the way he spoke, the high-pitched, goofy tone in his voice. The chakra swelled inside of me. It bubbled up, building more and more in my chest.

For a split second there was nothing as my chakra sunk into the scroll. Then, as if by magic, ink stared to bleed out of the paper, flowing and forming words and pictures. I watched carefully as the figure of Tobi formed on the page capturing him in flawless detail. I chanced a glance up at the two to see the exact image Sarnik showed me as it followed Tobi's movements perfectly. I waited patiently for the small list to appear in a column next to him.

Everything crashed around me as I stared frozen as Sarnik continued to show every single thing about him. All of the secrets of the man appeared on the paper and disappeared just as slowly as it came burning the facts in my head. Every lie and every mask cracked. I couldn't even breathe as I watched. This explained everything.

_I knew it._

_So this was the man that Zetsu pledged his allegiance to. How fitting._

Taking a deep breath I turned back, looking at Tobi. Zetsu had reappeared standing next to him and by the looks of it broke up Deidara's attempted fight with Tobi that had apparently consisted of him chasing him around screaming at him. By now as I looked at him, cowering behind Zetsu's back I didn't know what to think: the times he let slip his true power, the way he avoided scenarios that would bring up questions, and the truth Sarnik revealed—all of it pointed to a different Tobi.

Everything in my head was screaming for me to forget what I had seen. This was way over my head. I would have never guessed this and I never should guess this. Things could get really bad if he ever found out I knew. I could expose him. Involving myself in this would tie me up in everything. I wasn't even sure I was that important to the Akatsuki anymore knowing that Hayato was out there. Yet part of me had to know. I had to say something.

"Hey, Tobi!" I shouted waving at him. Zetsu's gaze snapped towards me with a dark look but I ignored him.

Tobi quickly returned the wave, dancing around. "Amaya-chan!"

"Can you come here for a moment?"

"Sure," he shouted blowing by both Deidara and Zetsu in a cloud of dust.

I grinned sitting back and putting my palms on the ground, pretending to be resting back at them. Tobi skipped over joyfully. Taking one last deep breath I glanced over Tobi's shoulder at Zetsu, giving him a small smile. If anything he would be the one that could ruin this moment. I only hoped that the way his eyes widened meant something good for me. Tobi was close enough.

The smile falling from my face I launched my chakra into the earth. Four metal walls instantly shot from the ground around us, one clamping over top leaving Tobi and I completely sealed in. With a quick jutsu I twisted my fingers into the dirt thickening the metal around us until there was no chance anyone could hear us, even if their ear was pressed against the wall.

Tobi stopped, all of his merriment drained out of him in a split second. I watched him carefully as he glanced around, looking at the cage I had sealed us into. Well, I should say sealed _myself_ into. Thanks to Sarnik I knew without a doubt nothing could ever hold him, not when he could phase through things with an old forbidden jutsu. He didn't even make a sound.

Dusting off my hands I focused on the ground for a long moment composing my thoughts. The entire time Tobi stood erect and silent. I wasn't sure what was throwing me off more: his uncharacteristic behavior or the fact that he might be acting very in character.

I looked at him. Seeing as he was going to keep standing I motioned for him to sit across from me. He didn't budge. I sighed taking a deep breath and waited patiently for him to comply. Hours seemed to tick by before he begrudgingly obeyed. He kept one foot flat on the ground, resting an arm around the leg while maintaining such a strict posture it reminded me of Itachi. I smiled weakly, folding my hands in my lap.

Before I could begin the wall next to me started to morph. I looked over my face blank and watched as Zetsu's Venus flytrap emerged from the wall. Every inch that came out was tinted the dark grey of the metal before ripening and turning the luscious green of the leaves. It didn't take longer than a second for Zetsu's full form to step out into the small container I had created. The Venus flytrap shifted, peeling open enough to show me his face. The weight of his gaze never felt heavier than now. I quickly shoved off the hole in the bottom of my stomach that it brought, instead turning back to look at Tobi.

No one moved. In my head I took that as a sign that both had realized what I knew. My only guess that Zetsu knew was because of how often those two were together. Even as I thought back on it now I couldn't remember any time they weren't together besides when he captured me and when he went to get the scrolls from the Village Hidden in the Mist.

I shifted forward, looking between the two of them my face blank. Tobi didn't move but I could feel his gaze on me. For the briefest moment I second-guessed having both Zetsu and Tobi here. What if there was a fight? What was I going to do if they threatened Katsu? Dig another hole like I had been doing since I arrived in the cursed place?

Zetsu shifted toward, a sour expression closing his face for a brief moment. The split distraction was all that I needed to make up my mind.

Taking another deep breath I closed my eyes, calming myself. "I think it's about time you tell me what's really going on here Madara."


	18. More Complications

**AN:** This one's a bit short so sorry about that but the next chapter will make up for it, promise! Everything's almost completely set up for the grand finale (or is it finally?) to get going. Woo!

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 18<strong>

**More Complications  
><strong>

Maybe I was expecting him to deny it or to be angry or upset and yell, maybe even laugh at me for being stupid enough not to look him up earlier, but I couldn't have guessed that he would ignore me. It was as if I hadn't even said anything. He didn't move, didn't speak—he simply stood there looking somewhere over my head. I kept my face impassive but by now my heart was pounding.

The air seemed to thicken. I tried so hard not to notice now all of the smaller details I hadn't before, like the way Madara's fingertips—that I could usually see—where hidden in his cloak, or the rigid edge on the side of that walls where I must have made an inconsistency in the metal sharp enough to cut yourself on, or the way the Venus flytrap on Zetsu's shoulders was still—something that never happened unless something was wrong. Everything was clearer. Crisp.

I didn't move an inch, keeping my gaze right at the center of Madara's mask. After a moment he finally spoke, but it wasn't even to me. "Zetsu, go tell Deidara that he isn't needed for the rest of the day. I'll still honor your request."

I convulsed, shivering at the sound of his voice. It wasn't the high soft, laughing voice of Tobi. All traces of the happy kid disappeared. Instead his voice was deep, demanding, raw and purely male. The very sound of it made my stomach clench. Keeping my face blank I stared in horror at the person in front of me, thankful that my body and eyes couldn't show what was raging inside of me.

Zetsu glanced over at me peaking my curiosity but I didn't dare look over at him. I kept my hands clasp softly in my lap as I stared straight ahead. I didn't have to look over at him to feel his eyes on my skin as he looked me over briefly. Suddenly I felt self-conscious.

"_**As you wish**__,_" his gruff voice murmured. As if required to every time they heard his voice the hairs on the back of my neck stood on end. In the next second he was gone, merged right back through the wall leaving me alone with Madara.

Finally he moved. "How much do you know?"

It wasn't a question. It was a demand. I forced my voice level. "I know that you were really the one that created the organization. I know that you're using Pein as a figurehead and giving him orders to give to people so—by what I'm guessing—they don't figure out it's really you controlling everything until it's time for you to iniciate your plan. I know that you've controlled the nine-tailed beast before and that you lost it.

"Before you were immortal you stole your brother's eyes because you were losing the light in your Sharingan and that you have this plan called the 'Moon's Eye Plan' and that you want to find someone named Sasuke. You made a mistake and I saw some of your true power when I was fighting Kisame. You hadn't been told that I'm a sensor ninja and can tell the different between chakras. In order to keep me from telling you knew you would have to silence me, but you didn't because so conveniently I tried to escape and you didn't have to worry about it for a while.

"The reason you can move so quickly is because you can do space-time ninjutsu, one of the only things that everyone in the organization knows about you, though they assume it's something else and don't know the full capabilities of it. That's one of the reasons Zetsu is useful to you is because he is the closest to keeping up." I paused glancing down at my hands for a moment collecting my thoughts. "There are a lot of things that I know right now. But what I want _you_ to explain to me is, what is going on _right now_."

"Do you know what the Moon's Eye Plan is?"

"Yes."

"Give me Sarnik," he demanded stepping closer to me extending his hand. "Along with both Dou and Chikee."

"How do you know about that?" I gasped, subconsciously reaching towards my necklace.

He chuckled darkly, turning up his chin. "I know more than you could imagine."

Frowning I shook my head. Something about him threw me off. Either from the way he moved or the sound of his voice along with the fact he hid his face completely from view I decided I didn't like him.

There was a rush of air sending shivers down my spine. The second I blinked he was next to me, a kunai knife in hand along with my necklace. I couldn't even open my mouth before he was again across the room with my clans protected scrolls in his filthy hands. "Give those back!" I shouted, ready to jump up, but he shook a finger childish at me. Subconciously I felt for Sarnik; I hadn't resealed it yet, only to find it was still in my back kunai pouch.

"Can't have you seeing something you shouldn't," he chuckled.

"Then why take Dou and Chikee too?" I rushed. "That's only medical and about my kekkei genki. I need to study those!"

He ignored me placing _my_ necklace inside of his cloak, the scrolls that my father gave to me, trusted me to take care of….

I growled about ready to rip that grimy orange mask from his face so I could beat it in. Carefully I forced myself to calm down. If he could appear across the room and steal my necklace from around my neck before I could even think of how to react there was no way I could afford to get on his bad side. At the moment I was going to have to obey no matter how much it hurt.

His form remained impassive and for a second I wondered if I should do something, but I didn't have to. "Have you told Katsu?"

I contemplated lying for a moment. It was awful tempting.

"No."

"Good," he stated walking over and putting one of his hands against the metal wall surrounding him. My body tensed, chakra buzzing at my finger tips ready to act if he tried to escape. "Don't tell him."

"Why?" I snapped irritably. Realizing my mistake I quickly cornered my emotions again and replaced the impassive expression on my face.

He turned back to me with what I could only guess as an amused expression on his face. "I have made a promise not to kill _you_ but having that boy know is a risk I cannot afford to take."

Snarling I glared at him, clenching my fists to keep myself from trying to pound in his face. He was threatening Katsu in front of me to make me do what he wanted me to do? The very thought made me sick to my stomach. Thinking about him even touching a hair on Katsu's head was revolting. My nails dug deep into my palms, but not even the pain could stop my anger. I wanted to rip his head off.

"I thought we had established this already," I hissed. "If you kill him you lose me."

"What gave you the impression I was going to kill him?"

I glared, taking deep steadying breaths. Now wasn't the time to lose my patience or worry about Katsu. For the moment I had to do whatever it took to find out what was going on. Knowing this could possibly give me a chance to have the upper hand for the first time since getting here.

"Why am I really here?"

He turned his back to me, his hand still touching the side of the wall. For the first time I noticed that he was wearing black gloves. _Strange_, I thought looking over him again. Now that I really looked he wasn't showing any skin at all.

"You're here for several reasons now," he stated looking at the ground. I gulped, leaning forward a fraction of an inch. "Kill Hayato, find the other jinjurican, and more. You'll find out soon enough, but for now you listen to me. I am your leader."

I frowned, but didn't bother to say anything else. At the moment I felt that I was pushing my luck as it was. A sudden thought came to me, something he had said earlier. Standing up I took my time dusting off my pants. He looked over at me for a brief moment before turning back around.

"What do you mean you made a promise to someone not to kill me?"

"Finally making the connection now?" he sneered.

He turned to go but I shouted out. "Wait! Why did you take care of Katsu after I tried to escape? And why did you let him stay with me?"

He paused and I could see it in the way he moved. His shoulders pushed down curling and tensing and his fingers twitched out stretching. They way his back curved and the slight tilt of his head as he looked up I could see his smile, the way it slowly curled up across his face hidden under that orange mask.

He laughed a moment before glancing back at me. For the first time I caught the glint of his left eye. My body froze, every nerve in my body tying up as my chest constricted and my lungs tightened. "When a man learns to love he must bear the risk of hatred."

Without another word he was gone, his body twisting into a small circle until he was gone completely. I didn't know what to think as I stood there dumbfounded. _When a man learns to love?_ What did that have to do with me?

No one came back for me the rest of the day. Not that I waited there long after I had returned the metal back into the ground and stood there awkwardly, my mind spitting out thoughts and questions faster than I could comprehend. As far as I knew the rest of the day was completely mine. Maybe that was my reward for discovering the true mastermind behind the entire Akatsuki organization, confronting him, and finding out absolutely nothing new.

I made my way sluggishly back to mine and Katsu's room debating on whether or not I could really keep this a secret from him. I had never kept any secrets, not unless I felt that they would endanger him to know. So I was at a loss, not sure if it would be more dangerous for him to actually know the truth or if he didn't know the only Akatsuki member he was starting to like was really an imposter. My mind kept flashing random pros and cons in my head, but I couldn't quite focus on them right now. Everything in my head was too jumbled. If I was going to make a decision on whether or not to tell him I was going to make sure I was 100% sure with whatever choice I made. Going by my gut instinct wouldn't be good enough here.

I found it slightly strange that I didn't even see a single other Akatsuki member as I went through numerous hallways. Part of me played it off to the fact that this base was probably much larger than I thought it was, but the other half couldn't accept such a light assumption. I wasn't sure if I was ever going to be able to just trust my thoughts now.

Half-way back to the room I realized I had no idea what I was going to do with Katsu once I got back. My promise to train he seemed like it had been years ago. Having that on top of everything racing through my head almost made me walk into a wall.

I shoved the thought aside. When I got there I would know what to do with him. For the time being what Madara told me kept replaying over and over in my head. He promised someone he wouldn't kill me and when someone is in love they risk falling into hatred. Did that mean he was telling me someone loved me? Or was he saying that because someone loved they hate me and he promised not to kill me so they could? Both ideas seemed ludicrous. I was in an organization full of S-rank criminals. They didn't love. They killed.

Could he have even been talking about Katsu and not wanting him to hate someone for killing me? I shuttered at the though. By no means would Katsu make a deal with Madara. He wasn't even strong to fight properly as a ninja let alone a man that was stronger than I could imagine.

Before I could even start to think about it I found myself face-to-face with my door. Taking a deep breath I forced my face into a soft smile and opened up. Katsu grinned broadly at me across the room. Right then I felt all of my thoughts melt away.

I was back here with Katsu again, my last lifeline here. As long as I could come back here every day and see him everything was going to be okay.

"Good day?"

I shrugged, peeling off my ninja sandals. Setting them by the door I stretched out popping my shoulders. "Not too bad," I murmured. It was the closest thing to the truth I could think of.

He bound over standing erect in front of me his light olive green eyes glittering. I couldn't help but ruffle his hair with a laugh. "What are you teaching me today Nee-chan?"

_Always so eager to learn_, I grinned. I motioned for him to sit down on one of the beds following after him. As soon as I was sure he was out of the way I closed my eyes reaching in for my chakra. Instantly the earth shot up out of the ground forming half walls that came up to my hip all of the room excluding the furniture. Raising my hand I formed the water in my mind. When I opened my eyes the enclosed area I had made was halfway filled with water. "Tonight, you're going to be learning how to walk on water."

His face exploded into an ear-to-ear grin and instantly he started ranting and raving about his training asking more questions that I cared to even think about. I sighed rolling my eyes at him. It took me longer than it should have to even explain it was the same process as walking up walls. The second I was finished he had already stripped out of his all of his clothes and hopped expectantly over the wall in nothing but his boxer shorts.

I full out laughed as he splashed all the way to the bottom, sloshing water around the enclosing. It was a good thing I didn't fill the water up to the edge of the walls. It was going to be a long, hilarious time until he learned this one.

For now I'd keep it from him. It wouldn't be right to take away any of his happiness here when it was so rare to come by. Maybe by the time I could tell him I'd know just what Madara was really talking about.

* * *

><p>But I didn't.<p>

Not much changed after my brief little encounter with Madara. Every morning I would still wake up at an ungodly hour, eat breakfast, attempt to locate more jinjurican, see how long I could work until my muscles burned form using my special power, and then go back to my room to teach Katsu. It was like I had fallen into some type of dream, reliving everything I went through earlier again and again. Besides having Katsu staying with me, the only thing different from the previous base was I now trained with not only Madara—or should I call him Tobi still?—was that I fought with Deidara, Kisame, and, to my horror, Itachi.

He was the worst out of all of them. His Sharingan; I'd never seen anything like it before. Having the ability to trap someone in a different dimension where time ran slow and they controlled everything was a terrifying power for sure. That along with being able to sense what I'm going to do before I do it and then to have unmatchable genjutsu was nearly unbeatable. Every genjutsu I seemed to break out of there were three more in place. The only thing I could do when I fought Itachi was wait and pray for a rare opening.

Deidara was much better suited to my abilities. There wasn't a need at activate my kekkei genki when I fought him for two reasons. One: it would do no good at long-range. Two: I was better suited to fight long-range where I could think, strategize and act. The only problem with him was his bombs. They had a nasty habit of sneaking up in places I wouldn't want them to be.

Kisame by far was still my favorite to fight. Despite the last time where I nearly killed him, he still didn't hold back anything when we fought. If anything he pushed me harder, forcing me to stretch to my limits until I had to activate my kekkei genki. He really was a master at hand-to-hand combat, but it was his ability to transition between close combat and long range that made him truly deadly. Several times I had to heal one of us at the end of training.

Only one other thing had changed. Me. Whenever I was around Zetsu a strange feeling crept up in my stomach. I couldn't sit still. I couldn't think. I couldn't breathe. And he knew it. Somehow he knew. So I took every precaution I could to avoid him and the few chances that I did have to see him, I made sure someone else was there. Something about him threw me off now. I couldn't look at him the same. I couldn't explain it; he was just different.

I tried hard not to think too much anymore. Thinking had started to form this habit of giving me a headache. Whenever I did my mind went right back to what Madara said and the truth about him, the fact that he was technically my leader, the person in charge of me when he had been lying to everything this entire time. And then I would start thinking about what the "several reason" for me being here were. By the time I even realized I was thinking myself in circles my head would be throbbing.

None of this was right. Madara wasn't telling me something. People didn't come after you for just any reason. People don't kidnap other people for no reason. There had to be something that they weren't telling me, the one fact that would tie everything together and give me the big picture. I was still missing the motive for any of this. Why couldn't anyone just tell me?

The only thing that was safe for me now was Katsu. Spending lots and lots of time with Katsu.

Before Katsu could burst into the room I could sense him sprinting down the hallways. Moments later I heard his labored breathing, but I pretended to be focused on reading the book I had found last week. It was a terribly droning story of a man who was driven crazy the first time he ever killed someone. "Amaya! Amaya!"

The door burst open with a loud _bam!_ I jumped startled. A large grin was plastered on his face.

"Nee-chan guess what! Guess what Tobi just told me!" he shouted, bouncing up and down in front of me.

My stomach plummeted. _Madara?_ Outside I smiled, closing my book and pretending to think a for a moment. He rolled his eyes hopping up onto the desk I currently had my feet propped up on and glared at me for a moment. I couldn't help but laugh, but quickly hid it with my hand.

"He,"—I stretched out the word thinking of the best possible case scenario right now—"told you that you're really strong?"

"No!" he shouted quickly. A puzzled expression crossed his face and I couldn't hold it in anymore. I laughed. Hard. It was the only thing I could do to hide the way my stomach was gnarling itself into pieces. "Wait! That's not what I meant. I mean I am—"

"Whatever," I grinned, prodding him with one of my feet.

He recoiled. "Don't do that," he grumbled, rubbing his side like it had a disease. "That's gross."

"You know? Sometimes I think you're more of a girl than I am."

"Hey!"

I chuckled to myself biting back my grin. Dismissing the conversation with a wave of my hand I turned back to what was more important hesitantly. I wasn't sure if I really wanted to know what Madara could be telling Katsu at the moment…. "So what did he say?"

"He's going to be taking me into town with him!"

"_What_?"

He grinned broadly mistaking my tone as excitement. I quickly covered, pulling up and smile. Inside my heart stopped beating. Madara was taking him away from me after I had finally gotten him back to some place I wouldn't be allowed to go to. Numbly I pulled my feet down and pulled Katsu into a hug. The second he couldn't see my face it fell apart. In my head I muttered every curse and insult I could think of.

"Yeah! Isn't it great? I'm going to get out of here and actually see people. Not these freaks that we're stuck around all of the time. And Tobi says that I'm aloud to get anything I want and bring it back as long as I don't tell anyone that he's in the Akatsuki. Maybe I'll even have a chance to show him what you've been teaching me!"

"No," I said quickly.

Katsu pulled back and my unreadable face was instantly back up. I cringed thinking about it. Now I was acting like this around Katsu? I didn't know how much I could take. He gave me a curious look, but I didn't give any ground.

I looked at him seriously. "I don't want you to show him anything I've taught you, okay?" He opened his mouth to protest but I grabbed his palm placing it against my cheek for a moment. His mouth shut. I knew he could tell I wasn't joking on this. I stroked his plam softly for a moment before trying explaining myself slowly. "It's very important that no one finds out that I've been training you. Don't be fooled because Tobi's nice and he's been taking care of you. He's just like all of the others. Think of what he did to you when we first got here. It's dangerous if they know you're getting stronger. They won't like it."

I cringed picturing all of the bruises he had.

"Do you really trust someone who did that?"

"But he said that things were different now. He said that it was important that I was happy and that he couldn't stand hurting me."

I dropped his hand turning around to keep from yelling. _He really did a number on you Katsu didn't he? I'm going to kill that man next time I see him._ Composing myself I turned back to face him. He stared confused at me his eyes sea green. "Katsu you have to trust me, okay? Please. Believe me on this. You're still young and you can still be tainted different colors easily." He gave me a look but I smiled softly. "I don't trust him. Be careful."

He bowed his head taking a keen interest in his sandles for a long time. To anyone else it would have looked like he was pouting but I knew he was being sincere. He was checking every part of him to see if he could.

"I will," he stated finally. He looked up and met my eyes and I noticed mournfully they were a deep ocean blue: he was sad.

Crumbling I stood up pulling him into my chest tightly. He hugged back, but I couldn't see the look on his face. It hurt so bad knowing that I had crushed part of his hope. It took everything I had not to tell him right there who Tobi really was, but it wasn't Madara's warning that stopped me. What stopped me was the fact that if I told him the closest person to him besides me was lying to him he would lose a friend. And I couldn't do that.

"I don't know what I'd do if I lost you," I murmured into his hair.

He said something back I couldn't hear so I painfully let him pull away. When he stepped back I noticed that his eyes had shifted slightly to a teal. I smiled softly. "Anyways I was wondering if you would like to come with us."

Confused I stared down at him. I had to have heard that wrong. "What?"

His face flushed in embarrassment. Suddenly he seemed to have lost his nerve. Awkwardly he twirled his foot in a small circle looking away. "I said: I was wondering if you would like to come with us," he repeated louder.

"You mean _Tobi_ wants me to come with you two?"

"I mean _I_ want you to come with us."

"So he doesn't know about it?"

"Look do you want to come with me or not?" he snapped irritably a nice shade of pink crossing his face.

I about said yes but stopped myself in time. If Madara didn't know then he didn't want me to come. He wasn't stupid enough to take me outside in a town with a bunch of people and let me run free. There was a reason that he was taking Katsu with him. The chances were it was to get us separated and leave me here in the process.

A lie popped into my head. "I can't," I said disappointed. "Pein still has me finding the last jinjurican. I'm not aloud going anywhere until I've finished."

His face fell but thankfully before he could say something the door again burst open. Tobi stood there looking intently at me; I could feel it. "Oi! Amaya-chan! Katsu-san!" To my shock his voice was once again high and childish, bubbling uncontrollably as if he didn't have a single care in the world.

A grin spread across Katsu's face and he whipped around. Quickly I made a sharp face at Madara shaking my head no. He tilted his head to the side, but before I could answer Katsu glanced back at me with a mischievous smile. My face was instantly smiling again.

"Hey, uh, Tobi," he turned back to him and I repeatedly shook my head no. If Madara noticed he didn't make any move to show it. "Can we take Amaya with us?"

He scratched the back of his head a moment stuttering out something, making a big deal to glance between us several times. "I can't," he shrugged.

"What! Why not?"

Over his head I pointed at myself then mouthed "jinjurican" to him. I could feel his Sharingan eyes digging into me. "Amaya-chan had to finish finding the jinjurican. Pein said she's not to leave until she finishes her mission." He paused, no doubt seeing if he was going to protest. The second Katsu opened his mouth he shrugged again. "I can't."

Jutting out his jaw his eyes flickered. "Then I'm not going."

"Wh-at?" Madara exclaimed slapping both of his hands to the side of his face.

Madara's exposed eye burned into me the second Katsu turned and looked back at me like it was my job to change his mind. Trying hard to ignore it I locked eyes with Katsu, memorizing his soft strong face. "If she doesn't go then I don't go. I'm not leaving her." He crossed his arms definatly.

His gaze burned in a hole in my head. Unable to take it I let out a soft sigh. "No, Katsu. Go."

He whirled around on me. "But—!"

"Even I've gotten to go outside Katsu. Don't worry." I stole a glance at Madara. What I said next was more-or-less the truth; and I was praying I was right to do so. "I trust Tobi to bring you back."

"Are you sure—?"

"Yes."

He was quiet for a moment. Half of me expected Madara to keep up his annoyingly happy act of playing Tobi and shout something obnoxiously, but even he was uncharacteristically quiet. Katsu's fists clenched at his sides and his face clouded over. I knew that I had trapped him.

"Fine," he said. "I'll go. But you better find that stupid jinjurican-whatever before I get back, got it? 'Cause next time you're coming with me no matter what Pein says."

I grinned ruffling his hair lovingly and stepped back painfully. He glared crossing his arms. My chest constricted as I sat there and watched as Tobi started shouting and tugging Katsu away. He grinned back at me one last time before his head disappeared behind the door. I had just given the light of my world into the hands of the enemy.

It didn't take me long either to find out that Kakuzu and Hidan had finally received another mission from "Pein" to go capture the two-tailed beast. Without Hidan's curses and shouting the base had fallen silent. Deidara didn't even have Tobi to yell at anymore. I found myself wondering through endless abandoned corridors with nothing to do but worry.

There wasn't even training to keep me busy.

Meandering aimlessly I found myself making my way towards the kitchen hoping to find Kisame. During the past couple of days I had found him tolerable to hang around when I wanted to see some other living creature in this base besides Katsu. But even when I stepped in the kitchen was empty.

I was all alone.

* * *

><p><strong>Read and Review please! How do you guys feel about my portrayal of the other Akatsuki characters? Yay? Ney?<br>**


	19. Never Saw That One Coming

**AN:** Alright. After a slight pause for me to get used to actually having homework in college again (Yes, the dreaded homework), I've finally gotten the hang of managing all my time again, and I'm not just running around like a chicken with it's head cut off. So, to celebrate I thought I'd post a nice long chapter for you guys! Yay! *Round of applause*

So I know I don't require reviews or anything for my next posts - I find the idea kind of stupid - but I was kind of sad to see how many people liked my story, started following, favorited, and read and what not (yes, I can actually see how many people read each chapter when) and only TWO people commented.

Thank you **Cloudy Momochi****.** If it wasn't for you and your support throughout this story I probably wouldn't have had nearly as much motivation to actually get chapters out. I completely feel you with the blank mind. I've been going through college like that for a week and a half now, lol. Go learning!

And thank you **TheAkatsukisPet**. I know, I thought it was so funny picturing Zetsu actually blushing. Ha! Our lovable cannibal blushing :) That just makes me smile.

Now, on with the story!

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 19<strong>

__**Never Saw That One Coming  
><strong>

_Giggling wildly, I crept up to the door frame trying desperately to keep myself quiet. It was hard. The wooden floor was frigid under my feet, the air still soft and warm from the rays of sun that pooled through the open windows. I bit my lip hard to keep from laughing. This was just so funny._

_Silently I poked my head around the corner. One lone man was sitting in the room his pale face hidden under unruly locks of thick crimson hair. I'd seen his face so many times now I could picture it perfectly in my head to the smallest detail: the strong line of his jaw and the straight bridge of his nose just a fraction too long. He was sitting back in his office chair reading a long scroll with the light from the day outside. It took everything I had not to call out to him._

_But I couldn't._

_Not yet._

_Stealthily as possible, I crouched down slipping into the room avoiding all of the squeaky boards. Only a little closer…._

_"Daddy!" I shouted, leaping up and tackling him into his chair._

_He jerked, throwing the scroll easily aside, but his experienced hands caught me as I started to fall back to the ground as if he knew I was there all along. I was too happy to notice, giggling madly in his arms. "Pumpkin what are you doing here?" he laughed ruffling my hair._

_"I scared you," I teased, wiggling around._

_He smiled, kissing me under the ear and tossing me up in the air as if I was as light as a feather. Squealing I buried my hands in my face. "Daddy!"_

_"Yes?"_

_He tossed me high into the air again making my stomach flutter up into my chest. "Stop it!" I whined as he caught me._

_He stopped grinning largely at me, tickling me slightly before pulling me safely up onto his lap and wrapping his arms snugly around me, my face cradled in his shoulder. I frowned, wiggling my way free of his grasp until I could look up and see into his eyes. I always loved looking into Daddy's eyes. They were as blue as the sky on a beautiful day covered in tiny speckles of gold swirling around. There was something soft and loving in his eyes—I couldn't get enough._

_"Daddy, you said you would help with target practice today," I reminded him, staring up into his caring eyes._

_"Did I now?"_

_"You did."_

_"That's a shame. I have a meeting with the—"_

_"You promised!"_

_He laughed ruffling my hair and setting me gently back on my two feet again. "I know. I know. Don't worry. I'm coming. I'm only joking."_

_"Good," I grinned, taking off running through the hallway laughing loudly. "Catch me if you can!"_

_His laughter rang out loud and clearly throughout the house like the beautiful sound of bells. Seconds later I could here the soft thuds of his feet as he chased after me. I only grinned, speeding up._

_Then just as soon as my foot hit the wooden hallway all of the laughter was gone, drained straight out of me. His footsteps were no longer behind mine. There was nothing. My heart was beating too fast. Too hard. It hammered against my chest and I found myself sprinting up the steps knowing there was nothing I could do to stop it. My feet hammered against the wooden floor._

_Daddy wasn't chasing me anymore._

_They were coming for him._

_I flung open the first door on the right as thunder boomed through the house. The pounding quickened. I could barely breathe. Desperately I searched around looking for the loose board in the floor, feeling every time the thunder cracked outside and lightning streaked across the sky. It didn't take long before I caught sight of it out of the corner of my eye. Father had taught me to do this so many times before. Right now I only wished that it was one of those practice times with him where he would scoop me up in his arms and hold me tight._

_Thunder roared making me jump._

_Flying over to the board I clawed desperately at it, tearing it from the floor. Downstairs the sounds of the front door sliding open make my throat go dry. They were here. Seconds later the clang of metal on metal erupted downstairs, followed by voices. I was too far to hear what they were saying but I knew my dad was down there._

_Hiroshi started crying. Panicking I swung around, staring frozen at my baby brother. Downstairs was silent for a moment. It beat so loudly against my ears. Every shuffle felt like bombs dropping overhead filled with the burning pulse of my blood racing in my ears._

_A scream._

_Cold sweats broke down my back. That was Father's voice._

_A lone deep voice rose between Hiroshi's cries. "…kill him..." The man's voice was so calm and deep like velvet. The single words made my heart stop._

Shooting out of bed I lunged for the kunai under my pillow. But my mind was burning images across my head. It wasn't the panic of my nightmare that sent my heart pounding in my chest and my head spinning out of control. Tears built up in the back of my eyes and for the first time since being here I let myself cry.

His voice replayed like a broken record in my head, taunting and ripping me apart piece by piece.

Everything was sharp. The cracks in the wall. The frigid tint to the walls. And my throat went dry as for the first time I realized who had killed my father, where I had heard that deep silk voice, and how close I had been to him.

"D-Damn i-i-i-it," I cried.

It took only two seconds for me to register where I was and that I was still alone. Katsu was gone. People had left on missions. And my fathers murderer was still out there, but right now everything had happened before this felt like a dream, one crazy _screwed up _nightmare I had been stuck in.

My arms fell limply to my sides as I curled up in a ball, staring blindly at the wall across the room. The kunai fell forgotten on the sheets. How could I? How could I have been so close to the man that murdered my father and not even know it?

I _would_ avenge him. No matter what it took I'd kill that son of a bitch.

Someone shifted across the room. Snapping alertly I curled away from the noise, quickly whipping my tear stained cheeks. My eyes shot over to the figure leaning leisurely against the wall but my eyes refused to focus. In my head I knew who it was before I could even make out those two distinct yellow eyes piercing through me in the dark. The second his eyes latched onto me my stomach twisted and churned uncomfortably my palms breaking out in a cold sweat. How much had he heard? Did I even talk in my sleep again?

"_You were shouting_," he answered my unasked question, giving him an excuse to be in here, to watch me when I slept. Somehow I knew this hadn't been one of the only times he had been here watching me. And as I looked up into the endless golden orbs I knew something else….

Anger pumped through my veins seeing him here, seeing the look in his eyes as he stepped forward the white half of his face catching some of the light from under the door. Everything in my mind shut down there. Quickly I stood from my bed, stepping in front of him.

"You knew."

He didn't move, the look in his eyes never changing.

I hissed out, glaring at out. "You _fucking_ knew!"

"_What are you talking about_?" his smooth softer voice questioned. The sound of his voice only sent my temper flaring. How dare he act like he didn't know!

I stepped forward, keeping my fists clenched at my side, my heart pulsating violently. "Haya—He…"—my voice cracked. For a moment I almost lost it the tears forming back in my eyes. But I couldn't not now, not when I knew that I could have avenged my father—"_He_ k-killed him. You knew that man killed my father and you didn't say _anything_!" I screeched.

Right then his eyes flickered. The guilt spilled over his face as his eyes shifted avoided my gaze. "_**Yes**__,"_ his rough voice stated, "_**I **__**knew**_."

"Bastard!" I shouted punching him hard in the face. The force of my blow nearly threw me off balance when he caught my fist again with his inhuman-like reflexes. I gasped, trying to pull it back but he held on tight his face falling blank.

"_**You would have never listened if I told you**_," he stated, his grip tightening as I tried to rip myself away again. His eyes bored into mine. "_So why does it matter now anyways?_"

Cracking I felt something inside me snap.

Inside me my temper flared. The chakra surged mind-blowingly through my body. Chills ran down the back of my neck in pleasure and I couldn't keep my eyes from fluttering slightly. My body was racked with silent sobs as I looked disgusted at Zetsu's face in the dark. How could have not told me?

As his eyes closed for the briefest of moments I let out a burst of chakra feeling my body speed up. It was as clear but I could feel it streaming through me in a river. Bringing up my other hand I went to punch his face again. "What do you mean 'why does it matter'? Of course it fucking matters! He was my father!" I screamed. "I loved him!"

His face contorted a second but his eyes were unreadable. Uncaring. I glared, tears threatening to fall from my eyes. "_**You would have never listened**_," he repeated.

"You could have tried!"

He barely managed to catch my other fist.

"You could have said something." Squirming I tried bringing up my elbow, attempting to knock him back but his grip only slid to my forearms. "You could have me listen!" Butting my head in I went to hit him but he quickly pushed me back far enough I couldn't touch him, each time I tried to kick him twisting his body skillfully. His grip on my forearms never left as he dodged my every attack as I screamed at him. "You c-could have done _something_…"

Then just as quickly the sizzling energy was gone. I was left bare and empty in his grip, glaring up at him as tears started to spill down my cheeks. His face went blank, the Venus flytrap opening wide to let him study me carefully, showing an off look in his frown. His arms stayed tense.

Neither of us moved as we glared at each other. My body still shook as tears continued to build up behind my eyes, the reality sinking in: the reality that I let my father's murderer get away unscratched and that I was the only one to blame. The horror that I tried blaming it on Zetsu was gut-wrenching. I felt so bare. So empty.

"H-Ha-Have you ev-ev-ev-ever let down some-one you l-loved?" I choked.

A distant look crossed his eyes, an ache of pain I didn't recognize. "_Yes."_

I cried, tears streaming down my face as my knees gave out under me. Zetsu stepped forward, pulling me tight into his chest as his arms caught me easily around the waist. I didn't think as I curled tight into his body, wrapping my arms around him and sobbing into his chest.

"W-W-Wh-Why?" I sobbed, clutching him tighter. "Wh-y?"

Everything inside me broke down. Without any regret or remorse I fell apart, crumbling in Zetsu's arms. How could he have known I was the Holder? How else could he have avoided the Seekers so long without getting caught? He was the Seekers! He was a murderer! A killer! He took _everything _from me.

I cried and cried and cried, letting out everything. All of the tears I refused to shed over the years, all of the hurt and agony in my soul. I cried.

It wasn't until I felt a hand in my hair and felt the steady heart beat against my chest that I realized what I was doing burying my tear stained face in Zetsu's neck. One of his hands smoothed down my hair, cradling my head almost tenderly as his other arm held me close around my waist. I could feel the unnatural coldness of his skin seeping through my thin sleeping shirt, soothing my scorching flesh. My body was still on fire from my nightmare, but with him I felt safe.

With a sniff, I tightened my grip around his chest, nuzzling my face deeper into the crook of his neck and I felt him pause. Then he only pulled me closer, curling his body around me, his head pressed against mine and every inch of us obsorbed in each other.

"_I'm sorry_," he mumbled into my hair.

I choked on my lingering sobs.

"_I'm sorry._"

* * *

><p>The next morning I woke up slowly, feeling the sunlight washing over me from the window. I sat up, carefully stretching out each and every muscle I could, lingering with the muscles in my back.<p>

Katsu's bed was still empty, the sheets untouched. I frowned. Madara must of taken him further away than I thought, maybe out of town. I was hoping he would have been back by morning. I shook my head, pulling myself out of bed and deciding not to linger on it. Instead, I drifted over towards my dresser, pulling out Sarnik from my hiding spot. I focused quickly on an image of Katsu before releasing my chakra. Thankfully, an image of Katsu snoring sound asleep on a bed bleed to the surface of the parchment. He was safe.

I looked around breifly, judging how late it really was, but decided that if no one had come to get me yet I probably wouldn't have training until later. I'd gotten quite used to Kisame's wake ups for a nice hearty breakfast – or really any meal since he seemed determined to get me to cook everything for him.

With a sign, I grabbed Sarnik and sank back down on my bed, letting my mind wander from various things as I pictured them in my mind.

_Wait a minute._

I looked up, glancing closely around my room for any sign of what happened last night. In my head I could still remember the way Zetsu held me in his arms, flush against his strong muscular chest as I sobbed my heart out. Curiously I tried picturing an image of last night in my mind, willing Sarnik to show me if it was true. I frowned when nothing came up.

"Oh, right," I murmured, scolding myself. "Only present things."

While Sarnik was my greatest tool and asset to finding things out it would only show me things that were curently happening or list me things about people and places. It wouldn't allow me to view the past since Sarnik as unable to call upon memories. Since I doubted anyone had written anything about last night – Zetsu didn't strike me as one who had a journal – there wouldn't be anything to show.

Instead, I turned my focus towards Zetsu. His image quickly filled the page. The large mass of his lush green Venus flytrap filled the page, meaning it was probably closed, hiding his face, but when I tried to zoom out only an endless sea of green covered the page. _Odd._ Biting my lip, I tested my luck pulling up a map of this new headquarters, hoping to find out where he was, but the strangest thing happened. The dot that located him was stretched out through the walls. But the couldn't possibly be true. Could it? I watched closely only to notice that the stretched out dot ended directly at my room.

Suddenly paranoid, I glanced around me, looking for any sign of the plant man. Maybe the dot represented what happened to him when he used his Mayfly technique. After all, he did travel through the walls. Yet, I always assumed he moved extremely fast whenever he did that. When I looked down at the dot it had barely moved, slowly shrinking back towards the size of a regular round dot.

"Zetsu?" I called hesitantly.

There was silence. Nothing in the room shifted or moved.

With a huff, I looked back down at Sarnik, seeing the dot firmly rested in the wall between my room and the hallway. _Something must be interfering with it_, I decided at last.

Right as I thought that I smelt it, Zetsu's unignorable chakra leaking in my room. My head snapped over towards the wall only to see the grey metal shift out and morph to the lush green leaves of Zetsu. In a second he stepped out of the wall right in my room.

_I guess it wasn't lying._

I frowned, realizing I would never know if he was ever by my room if he was in his Mayfly technique. Could he actually see out of the walls when he was doing it? A shiver ran down my spine at the thought. Who knew how often he could be looking in at me if so. Had he?

I shook my head, clearing away the thoughts.

Zetsu stepped forward, not quite a smile on his lips but somehow I could tell he was in a decent mood. The air about him was soft and soothing. His shoulders were relaxed, his steps slightly audible on the floor. At least he wasn't trying to sneak up on me.

"Hey," I greeted, giving him a slight smile.

"_Amaya_." His eyes flickered down to the bed. It took me a second to realize I hadn't released Sarnik yet. Flushing, I quickly let my chakra dispel, the tiny black dot on the map vanishing back down into the cream scroll parchment. In my mind I hoped he hadn't realized what the dot represented, but with the way a slight blush covered my cheeks I was sure he would be able to guess if I didn't distract him.

I sat up straighter, rolling up Sarnik and setting it on top of my dresser. "So what brings you here Zetsu? Usually you just knock."

Instead of being abashed as I had hoped the corner of his lips quirked up in an easy smile. He took another step forward, holding my confused gaze. "_**You're the one who told me not to leave last night**__ but I felt it would upset you if I was here when you woke up. I was coming back to check on you._"

I blushed, unable to hold his gaze. Staring down at my hands, I shifted. Apparently I hadn't been dreaming about last night. I don't remember saying that though… "Oh … right."

His footsteps stopped when he stood directly in front of me. I nearly jumped when I felt his hand on my chin, pulling my head up to look into his liquid gold eyes. He scanned my eyes, taking in every detail to my very core. "Are_ you alright?_"

I blushed under the intensity of his gaze, but before I could open my mouth to stutter out a reply his rough voice cut me off. "_**Of course she's alright Baka!**_"

I was hoping his gaze would waver but his other half didn't seem to sway anything in his actions as he waited patiently for me to respond. To my absolute horror my mind went absolutely blank. All that I could think of was how good it felt to have his cool large hand lifting my face, his thumb rubbing small circles on my chin, and how beautiful he actually was. His beauty wasn't traditional, but it was stunning. Exotic. The leaves of the Venus flytrap unfurled more.

"Uh…"

"_Amaya-chan?_"

"Don't," I scolded, shocking myself. He pulled his hand back, straightening up to his full height. My blush burned all the way down in my chest. Shakily I forced myself to continue, not sure where my sudden burst of feeling came from. "Don't call me by –chan." _It feels wrong_, I finished in my head.

He nodded.

Forcing myself to look away, I stood, giving Zetsu no choice but to step back and give me space. "And yes, I'm fine."

"_**Madara-sama has not yet returned with the b—**__Katsu—__**so you're training is cancelled for the day. He—**_"

"Why?" I interrupted, walking across the room to begin to gather my things for the day. Glancing over my shoulder I silently apologized for cutting him off. "Can't I train without him here?"

"_Tobi-san is in charge of your training. __**He monitors all progress of the members. While he's gone I'm in charge of making sure you don't do something stupid like usual.**_"

I grimaced, knowing I couldn't argue with his barb. _Makes sense,_ I thought, returning back to shuffling through my stuff. If I wasn't going to be training then I probably wouldn't have to worry about fighting today, at least not with Kakuzu and Hidan still out on their mission.

Zetsu walked over toward my dresser, standing just on the side so he could see my face and I could make out his black and red Akatsuki cloak in my perifials. "_**He wishes you to save your energy for tomorrow.**_"

"Why?" I glanced up, finally deciding on a simple pair of ninja pants, a mesh shirt, and one of my old tank tops to go over top.

"_There's going to be an extraction._"

Furrowing my eyebrows, I paused. An extraction? What did he mean by that? What could Madara possible need me to extract? If he thought I had any experience in any types of extractions then he had another thing coming to him. I opened my mouth to ask my questions, but out of the corner of my eye I saw Zetsu move. Looking over, he stopped, his face slightly scrunched, and I waited a second to see what he had been doing. Zetsu didn't do anything for no reason. My frown deepened. For a second I almost felt like he was going to reach out to me…

Did I want him to reach out to me?

I paused, staring up at the ceiling as the shock settled in. My first instinct was to say no, but I hesitated, looking deeper to see if that was really the truth. In a way, I wouldn't mind… After last night, deep in my heart, I knew something had softened around my already mixed opinion of Zetsu. The idea of him holding me, even just resting his hand on my shoulder or back, holding my hand; it didn't really bother me.

_Hm. I wonder when that started._

"_Amaya!" _Zetsu called.

Jerking out of my thoughts, I dropped my clothes back down in the dresser drawer. Zetsu glared at me, clearly annoyed. I blushed, realizing he had been talking to me. Sheepishly, I turned to give him my full attention, still too proud to bow my head in shame in front of him. His face softened, a frown replacing the glare on his face.

Gesturing towards Sarnik, Zetsu took a step back from me. It wasn't until then how close we had been standing. Like it was natural. "_**Madara will find out you hid the other scroll from him. **__He doesn't like being tricked. __**He'll be pissed,**_" he stated, staring me down. "_I would hide it somewhere safe._"

"No," I denied before I could even think about what he said. Cringing, I closed my eyes to smooth over my statement. That was the second time I had done that in the past five minutes. After a second I glanced over at it. "I can't. I can't let it out of my sight. My father … he put me in charge of protecting all three scrolls of my clan. I can't risk hiding it somewhere. Someone could find it." _I've already lost the others…_ I added sadly to myself.

The Venus flytrap shifted, each of the different prongs moving and pinching causing his cloak to rustle. He stared hard at the scroll. "_**Give it to me.**_"

The air turned palpable in seconds. Swallowing thickly, I stopped myself from responding, carefully turning towards him and first judging his sincerity. He was angled away, his face staring off someplace towards the window, yet the one eye I could see was staring directly at me, large, golden, and observant. Despite how his Venus flytrap was frozen, the prongs unfurled and still—something that was more unusual than them always opening and closing—he was studying me, watching my reaction just as closely as I was watching his. It was a stare down by two unreadable forces, the pause before a battle.

Carefully I thought of the reasoning behind his offer. After all, Zetsu _always_ had a reason for what he did. Lately he had been respectable and surprisingly thoughtful, borderline nice to me, which normally I would have through suspicious. Even since I helped realign his back in the woods he hadn't done anything bad. With that, his intentions might be good.

Madara probably wouldn't think to search Zetsu either. That is, if he ever figured out not all three scrolls had been sealed inside of my crystal—impossible—then he would logically only try to search me. Maybe he would mess with Katsu to get to me, but not _Zetsu_. He was his direct subordinate, the only one besides Pein and Konan to know his secret, the only one in on his master plan (besides me). He was the last person Madara would think was hiding it from him.

Laughing once in disbelief, I shook my head. Zetsu must have immediately taken it as me laughing at him because his entire posture changed in an instant; shoulders back, fists clenched, brow furrowed, and glare hard. I panicked, for a split second fearing he would attack me.

"No!" I cried, reaching out towards him. I wasn't sure what I was doing with my hands, but I fisted his cloak in one hand while snatching up Sarnik and holding it out to him with the other. Quickly I sputtered, "I didn't mean it like that! Here, take it! I"—I flushed when he looked back down at me, his body still tense—"I want you to take it."

"_It was only an offer Amaya._"

I let my other hand drop to my side as I offered it closer towards him with a small smile. "Please. I-I trust you." For once, I wasn't lying.

Without a single hesitation he reached out, his fingers brushing mine as he took it carefully from my hand and hid it inside one of the many secret pockets of his cloak. A jolt sparked from our fingers again. This time I was ready, holding back my blush.

My eyes traced over his face, following the fine line between the ivory and snow white sides of his face. His nose was straight and smooth, leading easily from his sensually arched olive eyebrows to his surprisingly smooth curved lips. My eyes lingered, and I realized I wanted to kiss him.

The thought was enough for me to pull away, forcing my gaze back up to his liquid gold eyes. Immediately I was caught in them, leaning forward to get a better look to ow the color always drew me in.

I snapped to my senses when I felt his cool fingertips trace along my hip through my clothes. A massive shutter ran though me, leaving me short of breath and tingling all over, but I didn't dare to open my eyes to see how close I had let myself come to making a mistake. With a firm hand set on my dresser to keep my balance, I pushed back before anything else could override my senses.

There was no way I was going to kiss him.

The room felt small when I stared up at him with nothing to say. For the first time I realized we were actually in my room. Together. Alone. _Stop it! _I blushed deep scarlet, mentally berating myself for my train of thoughts. I cleared my throat awkwardly, not knowing what to say as we both stood silently for a moment.

A few awkward seconds later.

Zetsu seemed to come out of whatever daze had kept him so still and his eyes found mine before he turned sharp, heading towards the door. His cloak billowed out, sending a wave of daffodils and fresh earth washing over me. I sighed.

"_Come with us. __**It's time to get ready for the extraction.**_"

_Oh boy…_

* * *

><p>It would take a lot of time to explain where I found myself standing next. Not only because of who was there and what they were doing but what it felt like being back in dark abandoned hallways after getting so used to the faint light of the rainy sky from my window. Zetsu had simply stopped at the door, ushered me in, and vanished. Pein, Konan, Itachi, and Kisame all stood silently in a large room in what must have been the basement for this behemoth of a tall building due to the compressed dirt floor. None of them moving or even looking at each other. It was unnerving being so close to all of them, but I wasn't in the right state of mind to even realize what was going on. Naturally I sunk in closer to Kisame, and in turn Itachi, feeling most comfortable there.<p>

I didn't know what to think as I stood awkwardly in the silence. After all of the stress and chaos I had gone through my mind was still oddly numb to everything happening around me and I didn't quite know what to make of it. All I could do was sit there and contemplate what was happening inside me, _to_ me.

The air was cold but the room was hot. Those were the only things that made sense now. At the moment I was grateful that Zetsu wasn't here right now to stare at me. I couldn't imagine what that would do in my odd state, especially since my thoughts for the cannibal had been less than innocent lately. For now I seemed to slip into some other world not even thinking. I was simply there.

"How long could it seriously take?" Kisame snapped, being the first to shift.

Pein glanced up his murderous eyes focused as always. Seeing him brought back a vague sense of clarity. "Patience Kisame. Zetsu will be back with the girl soon enough."

"So much for that Mayfly technique he's always showing off. I guess it's not as fast as he thinks," Kisame muttered to himself. I smiled slightly.

He chortled in laughter quietly, but stopped after a moment seeing no one else found it amusing. I stared at him strangely before turning back to looking at my feet. I personally thought the Mayfly technique was something amazing, awful, but amazing. Everyone fell back into an eerie silence, but none of them seemed to notice.

_I wonder where Katsu is right now,_ I murmured. I smiled slightly picturing him in a busy city around people and kids his own age again. I could already see that big goofy grin on his face. As long as he was happy, I was happy.

Lightning zapped my nerves. Jolting upright I spun around towards the blank wall. I could feel it. Someone was coming. Quickly. Pein noticed my movement and turned his head slightly to glance back at me. I couldn't tear my eyes away from the wall as it started to morph back into one shape I was quite familiar with.

"About time Zetsu. I was beginning to think that you got in a fight!"

"_**Not everyone has such small control over themselves**_," he sneered. The side I hadn't seen in a while seemed to bloom again. "_Hidan and Kakuzu will join us the moment you call. __**They're collecting another bounty for the treasury**__._"

Pein stepped forward bringing his hands together. "Very good Zetsu. Prepare yourself for the extraction. We begin immediately."

I watched unable to tear my eyes from those two endless golden orbs. He smiled coyly at me as he bowed his head stiffly towards Pein. "Yes Leader-sama."

_Why am I shivering like this?_ I thought breathlessly. It was like my entire body caught ton fire under his gaze. The burning was back in the pit of my stomach. Trembling I forced my eyes away, staring blankly at something in front of my, anything else. The shivers and chills still ran free across my skin even feeling his eyes on me. I felt a pull, something so strong, stronger than what I felt back in my room, stronger than anything. When I glanced back a satisfied smirk was smothered on his dirty little face.

"What are we extracting?" I asked hoping to get my mind off of things.

Everyone turned towards me. Everyone that is, but Pein. Instead he turned towards Zetsu, a hint of disappointment in his eyes if I could see right. His eye spoke volumes.

The smile faded instantly. Quickly bowing his head again he mumbled something like an apology—or a curse, I couldn't tell—under his breath. "_She ran out before we could._"

I held my poker face but frowned at his lie. I didn't run out anywhere. Why didn't he really tell me? Giving him an odd look, I brushed the thought aside for later scrutiny.

Pein sighed turning back to me. I couldn't help but glance back at Zetsu one more time. His head was tilted slightly to the side, making it look as though he was bored, but from the turn of the Venus flytrap I could tell he was far from happy. "Very well then," Pein murmured, re-catching my attention. "I will tell you myself. You are assisting us in extracting the biju from the jinjurican by feeding in your chakra."

My frown only grew. "You can't extract the biju from a host without killing them. What are you planning on doing with the beast once you get it out with no host to control it?" I asked.

In the moment I saw the glint in his eyes I could tell they weren't planning on keeping the host alive. They weren't planning on keeping the host at all. If anything they were probably going to try and control the demon themselves. A sense of doom fell to my stomach. What if it went wrong? Would I be caught up in it too? A sick grin had crossed Zetsu's face. This probably was giving him his next lunch.

Horrified I watched as Pein actually smiled, stepping forward and placing his palms on the ground. I stepped back cautiously as he released a large amount chakra into the earth. Instantly the ground began to shake. The metal on the walls strained and cracked as something massive exploded from the ground, rumbling up into the shape of two giant hands fingers extended upwards. Each finger tip was large enough for someone to stand on it, but it wasn't the hands I cowered back from: it was the giant blob that emerged in a rough shape of a head. On it were nine eyes, six of which were open.

"Th-This is…" _This is what I saw the last time they had this meeting, when Zetsu had me guard them for three days._ "… wrong."

"Now"—Pein stood straight again and jumped easily up onto one of the finger tips. On cue everyone else mimicked him—"we must wait for the others to begin."

Someone stepped up behind me. I froze feeling their hot breath on my neck. Flinching I moved to jump back but every nerve in my body froze feeling their rough cold lips graze the skin of my neck. "_It's time for you to really join_ _**Amaya**_," Zetsu purred in my ear. My knees threatened to fall out from under me.

Before I could turn and say something he was gone, stepping back smoothly towards the wall. Heat flooded to my cheeks. I could only hope no one had been looking.

"Come," ordered Pein, motioning towards an empty finger. Turning his attention to Zetsu his eyes glazed over in a dead cold glare. "Monitor outside and warn us of any intruders. I don't want anyone ruining this extraction."

"Yes Leader-sama."

Again Pein turned back towards me. "Don't test my patience," he seethed.

I opened my mouth to protest. I never got to utter a syllable before a gut wrenching force knocked me from behind sending my feet sliding across the ground towards him. Instinctively I leaned back against it, fighting to keep my footing. The wind forced me closer lifting me nearly from the ground as Pein forced me where he wanted me to go. There was nothing I could do but obey for now. The moment I went to move forward on my own the invisible force stopped.

Lots of thoughts ran through my head as I jumped high up into the air and landed on one of the empty finger. The most prominent: I was going to help murder someone.

Did that make me any better than Hayato?

Even if I killed someone out of revenge, did that make me any better than them? Was I helping the world? Could I honestly believe that? That if by killing them I wasn't scarring the lives of their family and friends, that no one else will be tainted by them? Was I any better if I did this?

No. I knew the answer deep in my gut. I'd never killed someone without reason, rarely ever killed someone at all actually. I always tried to avoid it if I could and if I did have to kill someone it was only because they were ready to kill me. I'd only killed to protect, to save. But was that really ok? I bit my lip, my head swirling in circles. Inside I was shaken to the core. Could I ever forgive myself if I did this?

Staring down at the unconscious woman lying in front of the strangely shaped eye-covered head, I gulped. She looked older than me, not by much, but there was almost a mature-ness around her face. By the angle of her body I could tell at least one of her arms were broken along with several ribs, her foot twisting a bit to far as well. Though there weren't any bruises on her face, dried blood dribbled from her mouth and nose. She was already dying. So close to losing her life.

"If you screw this up I will personally make sure that pet of yours doesn't live to see another day," Pein threatened darkly, pulling me from my thoughts. My body froze. I wanted to retort but there was nothing I would be able to do. "Don't lose your focus."

Numbly I looked up at the others. All of them were turned the other way. I didn't pose enough of a threat to be watched now; part of me knew it. And I hated that. But there was no reason that I would ever pose a threat when they were dealing with the biju, the most powerful creatures in the natural ninja world. I couldn't do anything but take my place where Pein had gestured. I looked back longingly towards the exit, but it would be useless. They would only drag me back here by force. Disdainfully I turned back, closing my eyes before taking my place back up with the others.

Today I was going to murder someone.

Just like before.

_Their faces. Cold. Petrified. The looks in their eyes, burned into their brains as they died. I watched it. All of the pain and blood. The death. Their voices and deaths screamed in my head. It was pounding._

For a split second I nearly wished Katsu was here. Scolding myself I shook my head. I had to be going insane if I wanted Katsu here to see me murder someone. It would be pointless too because the only other person that knew it was me that murdered those assassins back then was … Zetsu. No, it was better that neither of them was here right now.

Just as I closed my eyes to prepare myself for whatever this jutsu may bring the last person I expected walked through the door.

_What the hell is he doing here?_

"You!" I shouted, jerking to attention.

"Oi, Amaya-chan! Hello everyone!" Madara beamed in his childish voice. He waved his arm around eagerly. "Long time no see."

"Where's Katsu? If something happened I'm going to rip—"

Tensing he swooshed his hand frantically in front of his orange swirling mask. "No, no, no! Katsu-san's fine."

My eyes narrowed. I wanted to yell at him and scream, pound in his face for making me worry, but I knew I couldn't. Who did he think he was inviting Katsu out after I found out he was the secret mass murderer, evil mastermind behind the Akatsuki? He did it on purpose. Reminding me that there was nothing I could do to keep the one's I loved safe. Even if I tried I couldn't touch him. All I could do was glare.

Madara giggled, clearly overjoyed by my submission. I clenched my fists to keep from attacking him. "Amaya-chan you worry too much. I would never hurt Katsu-san! He's back in his room." I wondered silently if he had purposely brought him back before this so that they could use him as leverage to make me participate. Maybe it had even been Madara's idea form the start.

_Stupid little inconsiderate jerk acting like he's a wimp to manipulate everyone around him,_ I thought viciously, a heavy glare mentally shredding Madara apart.

At least Katsu was safe, I reasoned. As long as he was happy and in one piece back in our room waiting for me I didn't have to worry. The second I could get back to him all of these messed up problems would go away.

A hologram appeared next to me in the shape of Zetsu. I recoiled, nearly falling off the face of my finger. But I guess by now I should be used to strange things. Two more holograms appeared on separate fingers in the shapes of Hidan and Kakuzu.

"Careful now Onna," Kisame grinned, laughing as I attempted to straighten myself up. "Don't want you getting hurt before we get started now."

_Don't want you getting hurt… Nyah, nyah, nyah!_ I mocked, mouthing several curses and insults under my breath as I mocked him. Kisame's barking laugh only made me flush more. He wasn't even bothered by my weak attempts to anger him. Childishly I whipped a kunai from my pocket and chucked it at his face. Without even fully drawing Samehada, he blocked it, laughing harder.

The only thing I could do was suck it up.

After all, this was going to be a _long_ three days.

* * *

><p>I never knew it could be so strenuous. Every nerve in my body, every muscle trembled. My breathing was nearly labored as I stared watchfully up at the seventh eye cracked open further. The more chakra it received the further it opened. Now I could see why Madara was risking having me help perform the jutsu now; they needed all of the chakra they could possibly get. Only a little further.<p>

My eyes flickered down to the woman that was hovering a blue aura that fed up to the mouth of the head-like statue. Every feature of her face was contorted in agony, but after the first day her cries fell silent. I could practically feel her tormented screams slicing through her raw throat until she couldn't even scream anymore. If she hadn't been in so much pain she probably would have been beautiful: long flowing blonde hair and strong soft features. For a moment my concentration flickered. My flow faltered.

"Focus," Pein hissed narrowing his eyes at me.

Swallowing I forced my eyes away from her. Bile rose in my throat, but I forced it down. This was to protect Katsu. I would do anything to keep him safe.

It almost made me laugh thinking of when I used to think climbing up a mountain was the worst. Now I truly understood what it meant to be fatigued. It wasn't just a pain in my back from a pack digging into me or the kunai poking me through my weapon pouches. This was my entire body twisting painfully all at once as if the jutsu was actually the only thing keeping me standing. All of my energy my strength was being sucked out of me. My very life leaving me. I'd always prided myself on having a large supply of chakra, but this … this was torture.

This was the difference between passing out and falling asleep. I wasn't just going to snap out of this the moment the jutsu was over. I was watching every single ounce of strength I had slip away from me and things slowly start to fall out of focus.

For once couldn't stand the familiar burn that was ripping through my muscles. It wasn't a good sore. This was from killing someone. To think I could be worried about how tired I was when I was sitting here helping an organization I loathed _kill_ a completely innocent woman who's only crime was that she was the holder of one of the tailed beasts.

And I hated myself for it.

Zetsu's gaze only met mine once throughout the entire jutsu. Part of me was grateful. I didn't know what would happen if that strange feeling took over me again, especially not with all of the others around. Yet the other part of me—well, I didn't know what that part felt.

I shifted again, nearly losing my focus once more. No one else moved. With a sigh I turned my eyes back up to the statue. The eye was almost open.

_Only a little longer…._

Then just like that it was over. The connection was broke. It took every last once of strength in my body to will myself from falling over.

Across the room I heard Hidan give out a long sigh. "Finally! That one was a bitch! I thought that was never going to be fucking over."

"Oi! That was tiring," Madara agreed, stretching out his back.

"Not too hard for you, un?"

"Nope! I hope Dei-sempai didn't think it was too hard…."

"Why you little—!"

"_**Deidara**_!" Zetsu barked. Instantly Deidara stopped, grumbling to himself under his breathe. I nearly laughed seeing Madara wiggle around Deidara saying things I was too tired to catch. Nearly. "_This is no time to fight._"

"You lucky Zetsu-_sempai_ is here Tobi. Next time you won't be so lucky," he threatened darkly.

Seemingly having enough with everyone's bickering Pein lifted his head, silently demanding everyone's attention. I didn't bother too look at him. Whatever he said now wouldn't affect me anyway—at least, it shouldn't. "Very good. Hidan, Kakuzu, I want you continue your search and located the Nine-tails Fox."

Kisame reached up, grabbing Samehada's hilt angrily. From across the large room I could see the veins in his blue arms strain. Yet, he kept his mouth silent, not giving away any other sign.

"I know very well that is Itachi's job. Since you two were unable to capture the boy I'm sending Hidan and Kakuzu. Zetsu, come dispose of the body." I snorted softly. Nothing to do with me at all.

The three holograms fazed out with a slight zap in the air.

I tuned everyone out gingerly leaning back and stretching out my tense muscles. Everything was so flimsy. A gust of wind could knock me over now. I dipped into my already depleted chakra and slowly soothed my muscles. It felt like cold water cascading down my skin. I let out a soft sigh, re-nourishing my chakra circuit. The chakra drop I felt didn't even compare with how much better my body felt when I finished.

Cautiously I looked back up to see that nearly everyone had gone. The only ones still in the room were Pein, Konan, and the trailing backs of Deidara and Kisame as they walked out the door.

I wasn't quiet sure what led me to do it, but as I jumped down from the finger I was perched on I waited. Somehow I felt a strong pull to stay.

Pein and Konan looked over at me expectantly once the door swung closed after Deidara and Kisame. I weighed the chances in my head. They would come over and order me to leave or they would let me tend to my own business. The chances were favoring they wouldn't do anything to move me; it shouldn't be worth their time. I was doing my job, leading them to more innocent people for them to kill. Deciding to take the risk I leaned back against the cold rough wall letting my body relax.

Pein moved silently ignoring me all together as he released the jutsu. Instantly the two hands fell down into the ground along with the eyed formation. There wasn't even a trace it had been there before. Everything shook as it fell, my legs barely strong enough to hold myself up.

"Come Konan," Pein murmured softly. I watched stunned as he gingerly looked over at her before walking off. Konan's gaze met mine for only a split second before she followed, silent as always.

Out of all of the people here, I had jet to figure out Konan. She was actually rather pretty, her face smooth and soft with catching eyes and hair. Even her single piercing complimented her face. Yet, I wasn't sure why she was here with all of these murderers. From what I had seen she hadn't killed anyone or gone on any missions. She only stayed near Pein, silently following him around as a shadow, almost like a protector.

Then again, who was I to judge?

There was a soft thud as the door closed. I found myself standing in the dark room with only the corpse of the woman to keep me company.

And I waited.

Minutes ticked by. In reality it couldn't be more than seconds, but it felt like centuries. How long I was standing there I didn't know. All I could do was hope there was a reason behind my gut feeling. My eyes fell lazily closed, drinking in the soreness and stiffness left over in my body. Everywhere still hurt. It was soothed, but still hurt. I couldn't remember how long it had been since I had used so much chakra.

Only when my body was on the verge of collapse did I dare open my eyes. Whatever I had felt must have been for nothing. I must be losing my mind in this place after all. It took my eyes a moment to readjust to the darkness once more.

Jolting, lightning stuck my heart. My chest tightened, my knees buckling. My back hit the wall hard as my legs nearly tumbled out from under me.

There he was, standing there.

A lump rose in my throat with beads of sweat dotting my forehead. All of the nerves in my body went crazy. It felt like I was going to be sick. "Z-Zetsu," I stuttered in surprise, instantly cursing myself.

For some reason, his presence affected me now more than ever.

He stepped forward. I traced over the high curve of his cheekbones and the straight line of his nose following down to his lips. My heart hammered. Quickly I forced my gaze up to his choppy olive hair. "_I thought you were asleep for a moment_," his smooth voice purred making my palms sweat. He stopped barely five feet away studying me closely with those penetrating eyes of his. "_**You waited**__._" It wasn't a question; it was a statement.

Swallowing anxiously I fiddled with the hem of my shirt. A haze was already starting to float over my mind. "Y-Yeah. I uh, did."

_Was this why I stayed?_

A predatory smirk slowly crossed his face. My eyes fell back down to his lips, the vixen curve tempting my eyes to linger. Chiding myself I forced my eyes back up. This couldn't be why I had wanted to stay. There was no way I would purposefully want to do this to myself. Yet, why did it feel like I wanted this so much?

He moved to step forward again. My mind shut down. "Katsu will wonder why I'm not back," I blurted not knowing what I was saying.

He froze, tilting his head to the side. The rich green Venus flytrap around his shoulders widened slightly, curling open slowly, tauntingly. I quivered, waiting for him to say something. For a split second my gaze fell to his eyes, but I quickly looked away. Seeing that he wasn't moving I shoved off the wall, forcing my sore body to move past him towards the door.

My legs buckled halfway towards the door. I felt in a crumple to the ground, no longer able to feel the circulation in my legs."Shit," I cursed, struggling to push myself up to my feet.

A black hand appeared in my vision. I cursed again, but eventually reached out and grabbed it, letting Zetsu pull me easily to my feet. The sudden rush of vertigo that hit me nearly made me topple over again, but Zetsu was quick to grab me by the arms, stabilizing me.

"Thanks," I muttered pathetically, kicking myself in my head for being so weak.

"_Do you need help? __**Didn't think one extraction would take so much out of you,**_" Zetsu asked.

With his help I easily straightened up, but I couldn't do much more than stand. My legs wouldn't have it. I let out a sigh, debating if it would be better to sit here and pretend to be okay, or actually have him help me. Then, I remembered the reason he actually came back. To eat the dead body. I shuttered, thinking of having to go through that again.

I opened my mouth to ask for help, but something kept the words from coming out. Instead, I finally forced myself to look up at his face and simply nod. Zetsu actually smiled, a mix between laughter and actual happiness, but it was a start.

I paused. _A start to what?_

Now that I agreed to his help, I wasn't quite sure _how_ he was going to help me until I found myself sucking in one of the deepest breathes and clinging with all the strength left in me as I found myself swept off my feet. To my embarrassment, he had somehow maneuver his way into my arms, meaning I was awkwardly holding around his Venus flytrap in a sad attempt to support some of my own weight as he held me in with little to no problem in his arms.

My cheeks burned hot as I felt, more than heard his laughter. Tauntingly, he smirked down at me with challenging eyes. "_**Not **_**scared**_** are you Ama-ya?**_"

"No!" I denied, only to squeeze him tighter as he started walking towards the door. "Shut up…"

Eventually I let myself relax, easing my death grip around his shoulder as the fatigue began to win again. We walked calmly through the building, up countless flights of stairs, and through several passageways. Not once did Zetsu's pace falter or slow. Even though I didn't think I was fat, I knew how tiring it could be to carry someone over long distances and I was deeply impressed.

At some point I sagged down in his grip, closing my eyes. The steady _ba-dump, ba-dump, ba-dump_ of his heart tugged at my conscious. Before I knew it, I fell asleep in his arms.

* * *

><p>Awww! They finally were able to have tender fluffy moments without one of them beating each other up! :) How sweet! Lol, sorry couldn't help but throw in the extra cliche ending, but I'm in a pretty sappy romantic mood.<p>

Anyone else actually excited that after 18 chapters they're finally starting to show each other how they feel?

The ball is officially rolling now. Lot's of stuff will be happening. Tell me what you think!


	20. Breaking Down

**AN: **I'm back! So sorry I fell off the face of the planet there for a couple of months but everything was going crazy for a while. I'm double majoring in two art fields and playing hockey in college so I have practically no time. That and for some reason I had a lot of trouble with this chapter. For some reason it didn't seem to flow well for me. But I'm back!

This chapters kind of odd. It's like a filler but it's not. Promise. Though there might be a couple spelling/grammar errors (my spell check isn't working for some reason), I tried my hardest to makes sure there weren't any blaring mistakes, but I also seem to miss a couple.

Question: Are you guys still happy with the pace of the story or do you think it should speed up a bit?

Question: Would any of you be interested in a Kisame story after this one?

* * *

><p><em>Chapter 20<em>

_Breaking Down_**  
><strong>

"Nee-chan!" Katsu beamed, jumping on my unsuspecting form.

With a grunt, I jolted up, my body contorted. "Ughhh," I moaned, my arms moving towards my broken stomach but instead I came in contact with a body. "_Katsuuu…_" With a brute shove, suddenly the body was gone with an unmanly squeak and I curled around my stomach.

When the throbbing finally faded, I curled over on my side, burying my face into my pillow. There was a muffled set of clomps heading in my direction. I sighed softly, sinking back down into the sheets. There was a nice cool breeze billowing around the room, serenading me back into a sweet calm quiet abyss of warmth and protection. I could almost hear a slight hum lulling me to sleep…

Then it shattered.

"_Amaya-chan!_" screeched one of the most ungodly and terrifying noises I'd ever heard.

Shooting up with a shout, I whipped the kunai out from under my pillow, leaping towards whatever it was in a sleep induced rage and pinning it down before it could react. I panted, staring wide-eyed until my eyes adjusted. Slowly I began to see, my entire body trembling in anticipation and adrenaline.

The second I made out Katsu's panicked face lying underneath me, both of his hands clutching the hand that held the kunai knife to his throat, I sighed, rolling off of him and onto the cold floor, limp. It took a few seconds for it to sink in that I almost killed Katsu. My Katsu.

_Shit._

"Don't _ever_ do that … again," I groaned out, throwing an arm over my eyes.

"S-S-Su-Sure thing Nee-chan," he stuttered out.

With my ears I could hear him shakily get up, his body stunned from my attack, but I didn't dare move to see his face. The only think I could think about what the petrified look in his eyes as I was about to plunge my kunai into his throat. Terror. Fear. He was afraid of _me_. What in the world was I becoming here? To attack him, even from my sleep induced haze… I snorted ironically. This place really hadn't turned me into anything I wasn't already. Besides, even before we came here I could recall a couple of other times when Katsu had the misfortune of waking me up. I'd never reacted _that_ bad though.

Shoving aside my self pity, I rolled over, propping up my head with one hand so I could see him clearly. His eyes were still slightly wide, but all in all he seemed to be taking it well.

"Rule number 2: never startle a stronger ninja. You never know how they will react," I nearly recited, proud at how commanding my voice sounded to myself. I smiled wiry when he glanced over at me in disbelief. "And that goes for _all_ situations, waking me especially," I grinned.

With a scowl, he pushed himself to his feet next to me, forcing me to either chose between rolling back on my back to look up at him or sit up. My neck groaned at the thought of craning my head to look up at anything this early. Groaning, I forced myself to roll up, holding one knee to my chest for support as I stretched my other leg out in front of me. For a second I wondered if Katsu would trip over me, considering we were so close. Then again, if he tripped over my leg when he was trying to be a ninja there were bigger things to worry about.

Katsu whirled on me, throwing out his arms. "What was rule 1?"

"Never question your teacher."

"But Nee-chan—!"

"Eh, eh," I chided, whacking him playfully on his thigh. He cringed, stepping back to rub his leg with a pout. Mentally I checked to make sure I hadn't accidentally hit him too hard, but I still couldn't help but laugh at his pout. Cheekily, I held in my laughter. "Rule 1."

"I didn't even—"

_Whack!_

He jumped back, holding his stinging hand to his chest. In return I forced myself to my feet now that he was too far away to give him another proper whack, popping and cracking my sore muscles as I went. "What was that—"

_Whack!_

This time he jumped back nursing his head.

"Alright! Alright!" he cried, holding out his hands in surrender. I smiled softly. Despite my desire to walk up and give him a hug as I normally would, I placed my hands on my hips. With a finger, I gestured towards the ground.

He almost opened his mouth, but froze when I raised an eyebrow.

"Now that you can walk on water—finally—it's time to train your body physically. Every morning I want you to do one hundred push-ups, crunches, and leg lifts before you do anything else. When that gets too easy for you, I'll make it harder. But for the first week I'll let you start with fifty."

"Yes Amaya-chan," he grumbled, dutifully following my orders.

Giving him time to do his work, I headed over towards my dresser to pick out the clothes I would need for today. Since the extraction was over and Madara was back, I assumed my training would continue as it left off, so I'd need to be prepared for anything. Curiously, I glanced over at the clock to notice it was only six o'clock. My training wouldn't start for another hour.

"And why in the world did you wake me up?"

Behind me the faint noises of Katsu's labored breathing paused, the rustle of his clothes stopping. I frowned, realizing he quit to answer me. As he started to speak, I walked over towards him. "I wanted to show you—"

_Whack!_

"Rule 3: never get distracted."

He stared up, falling to his knees. "But you—!"

_Whack!_

"Rule 1."

"Alright, alright," he grumbled, getting back down and starting his training again. I watched him do at least ten push ups before I was satisfied and continued to get ready. "Well?"

There was a slight pause, but this time he didn't stop. "You were … starting … to talk … in your sleep," he panted between push ups. "So I … wanted to … show you my … new mask … Tobi … got me!"

_A mask?_ I shrugged, not seeing the harm. After all, every ANBU wore a mask to conceal their identity. If Katsu really wanted to be a ninja it was old fitting, I guess. But why would Madara get him a mask? Was it some strange way to try and make him like Madara? Or was it just to earn his trust? A sudden thought struck me and my whole body tensed. What if there was a jutsu on it that would affect Katsu? My eyes narrowed.

Or… maybe I was over thinking things.

Again.

I let out a sigh, rubbing the back of my neck. Being in the Akatsuki hurt my head.

"Besides …" He let out a strange groan at having to talk while doing his pushups, but I was patient. "…you've been … alseep for … … two … days!"

_Two days?_ I frowned at the thought. It wasn't too surprising as I remembered how much of my energy I had used to finish the extraction, but I didn't think it would have been enough to take me out of commission for that long. Quickly reaching inside myself, my frown only deepened at how little my chakra had recovered. To even think how the Akatsuki members could do something like that and _still_ keep fighting? I shuttered.

Deciding to be merciful, I grabbed my clothes to go change, leaving Katsu alone to finish his work out without any more tricks or pestering. By the time I showered and came back out he was just finishing his leg lifts. I nearly busted out laughing, seeing how his face was turning deep red in his efforts. _Oh the days when those used to be hard…_

Brushing out my hair, I sat down on my bed, waiting for the traditional knock to come and signal I would be training now as I pondered what to do with Katsu now that he was back. Katsu finally finished, sitting back and panting to catch his breath. He calmed down for a few minutes, before jumping up and nearly crushing me in a tight hug.

"I missed you so much Nee-chan! The city was amazing! I wish you could of come. Tobi took me all around town and let me play all of these cool games they had out. In one of them you had to catch a fake fish with this tiny wire and hook it just right to get a prize. He was so good at it. That's where he got me this mask!" Taking a deep breath he bounced over to my pack on the other side of the room and pulled out a full face white mask covered with black flames shooting across the side of it.

That was funny. I didn't remember letting him take my bag… I tried hard to frown in disappointment, but I couldn't help but grin. _That sneaky little snitch…._

"He let me have it because he said he liked his mask better. Then—"

"Whoa now," I urged, grabbing him by the shoulders. "Hold on now. What has gotten into you? You feel alright?" I laughed.

"_Amaya-chan!_" he whined. "Yes I'm fine!"

"Oh really now?" I asked, smirking evilly at him.

"Yeah!"

I shifted closer, unable to hide the glint in my eye. He turned his back to me, jutting out his plump lower lip angrily, but I couldn't help but laugh to myself. Before he could do anything I pounced. "Wha—Nee-chan—!"

"Gotcha!" I screamed tackling him onto the nearest bed.

With all the strength I could muster with my tired body I grabbed his sides, tickling him wildly. He squealed, eyes bulging. I couldn't help but laugh, poking and prodding him everywhere I could as he busted out in violent giggles.

"Nee-Nee-Nee-ch-chan..." he laughed, squirming away from me. I laughed straddling him onto the bed. "_Stop!_"

"Never!"

"Bu-But Nee-chan!"

"Rule 1!" I cried, continuing my assault.

Finally, he chocked on his silent laughs long enough I stopped, smiling softly and pulled him into my chest as I laid back on the headboard of the bed. His chest heaved with some effort. A warm feeling spread through my chest as I watched him for a bit.

He protested against my hold, squirming around. After a moment he finally relented and his head fell down against my bosom. It was odd how affection I had gotten since we came here, but at the same time I couldn't even think of what it would be like if he wasn't here. I needed him. I couldn't live without Katsu.

"Now tell me _everything_," I murmured into his hair.

And he did. He talked about everything from the moment he left all the way to coming back. Apparently it had rained for most of the time until they made it to where they were going. Tobi made them stop several times along the way at each dumpling stand so he could induldge in his sweet tooth—something I still couldn't stop laughing at; Madara with a sweet tooth. Yeah right. He told me every little detail of the city and what they did. I ran my fingers lazily through his hair, listening half heartedly. I wanted to remember this moment forever: feeling him back in my arms, smiling, happy. This was what I was missing so much.

Two quick knocks interrupted our moment. I closed my eyes, feeling out with my chakra until a faint smell of salt and moss came to my senses. With a reassuring smile towards Katsu, I carefully detached myself from him and quickly walked over towards the door where I knew Kisame would be standing.

"Morning Kisame," I greeted casually.

He smirked, reaching up and gripping Samehada with a firm grip. I raised an eyebrow as he readjusted his sword. Suddenly I was fully prepared for him to arch the blade down and attack me right there. The hairs on my neck prickled at the gesture.

"Samehada's taken a liking to you," he explained, stepping aside so I could join him in the hallway. My curiosity got the best of me and I carefully glanced around Kisame's back to see his sword wiggling and clacking slightly underneath the white bandages Kisame wrapped it in. I shivered. There was no way I was ever going to use _that_ thing in battle.

Looking back over my shoulder, I waved towards Katsu. "Be back later," I smiled. He grunted, his eyes closed as he laid on his back. I chuckled. "And don't be a lazy bum, got it?" This time he glared, mock saluting.

"Sure thing _Sensei_."

A vein popped on my head and I quickly grabbed on of my scrolls off the dresser by the door and threw it. The _thwack _and flailing arms as he flew off the bed sung a cord of satisfaction in my heart. There was no way he was going to move for a couple of hours.

Kisame looked at me for a long moment as we walked. I tried not to turn to look at him, focusing on keeping up with his long casual strides. It was harder than normal. After yesterday—or two days ago—every molecule in my body felt like it had been stretched too far and completely drained off all energy. Back with Katsu I was trying so hard not to show him how drained I really was because I didn't want him to worry, but in all honestly, I felt like crap. I let out a groan of annoyance, knowing Kisame was assessing how terrible I looked. I bet even a wimpy Chuunin could beat my to Hell and back about now.

"Just say it," I sighed.

His eyes never left me though his face remained forward. "You look like Hell Onna." The deep gravel of his voice paired with his unique high twang only made my frown deeper and I sighed again, staring intently at the end of the hallway. Then from the corner of my eye I saw the flash of light off of his sharp glinting teeth. "Bet you couldn't even keep up with me now," he smirked.

A slight shiver ran up my spine from his menacing undertone, but I snorted and looked over at him with a raised eyebrow. "In your dreams," I taunted. Not that I would ever let him know he was right. I'd roll over in my grave first.

Secretly Kisame freaked me out sometimes. Normally he joked around, teasing and jabbing at other members he spoke to some people he got along with. But then other times, whenever he had an assignment or if he felt like fighting, he turned into a whole new beast. Nothing would get in his way, even a comrade. His aggression and blood lust was unmatched, only Hidan surpassing him. If there was anyone I was glad was on my side—at least, I hoped he was—it was Kisame. Not that I would ever tell him that though either.

I nearly ran into him as I went to turn into the kitchen as always, but his massive muscular body didn't yield. Jerking back, I paused, looking at him oddly before continuing on past the kitchen. Something in the pit of my stomach roared to life at the very thought of food and my spirits fell. After not eating for two days my stomach was angry. _Great. I'm starving and I don't get breakfast_… I grumbled.

Kisame laughed, obviously hearing my stomach rumble in protest as he took me down a different hallway. "You can eat later," he chuckled. I glared up at him, but it only made him laugh harder. "First you have to be briefed."

My ears perked up.

Briefed? As in mission briefed? Suddenly the disappointment I felt earlier turned into a gaping pool of dread in my empty stomach. Madara expected me to go out on a mission like _this?_ I could barely walk right! The point of be being in the Akatsuki was that I _didn't _go on missions. I thought I was supposed to be a _prisoner._

He must have seen the apprehension and disappointment on my face because he looked down at me, smirking. "Didn't think you'd get to stay here for free did you? It's about time for you to learn what _real_ members do Onna."

I tried hard to scowl, but I couldn't help the smirk that turned up the corner of my lips. The bastard was gaming me.

"They need someone to pick up your slack. If it wasn't for your ridiculous amount of chakra I couldn't even see how you could do even ANBU level missions. I don't think I've ever met a ninja that couldn't even beat a small little girl like myself," I goaded slyly. I peeked over at him to see his toothy grin.

A gleam in his eye brought a smile of my own out. "If Leader-sama didn't need you right now I'd take you up on that _little girl_."

I laughed heartily, relaxing back into his overpowering presence. I'd almost forgotten how much I enjoyed Kisame's company. His own chuckle joined my own until a sharp pain lanced up my side, halting my movements. It was only for the barest of seconds that my expression faltered but for someone as observant and intelligent as Kisame he caught up on it easily. His laughter stopped as a somber expression crossed his face. I cringed, reaching up tenderly to ease the ache that throbbed by my ribs.

Injured ninjas never came back from missions. He knew that.

"What kind of mission?" I ventured after a tense moment of walking.

I didn't say anything, but I noticed his long easy stride had slowed a bit since the pain in my side. It hurt my pride to admit it, but I was glad. Even still, it was hard to keep up.

Samehada shifted slightly as Kisame shook his head. For a split second I was reminded of Zetsu and the way his Venus flytrap was always shifting, but I shooed the thought away as quickly as it came. I didn't want to think about Zetsu right now.

"You won't get anything out of me," he stated, glancing over at me with his beady eyes. "You'll find out soon enough."

Thankfully we made it shortly after, coming to a stop in front of two metal doors slightly taller than the others I had seen. In my head, I placed this as Pein and Konan's office. No doubt Madara would be waiting for me inside. The two-faced conniving bastard….

A heavy hand fell on my shoulder. I jumped, whipping my head around as cool energy broke through my chakra gates, flowing thick and heavy through my body like murky water. At the same time it was fast and powerful, easily filing and refreshing all of my exhausted muscles like a supernatural spring. Exactly how I pictured Kisame's energy to feel like. Kisame looked down at me, all signs of joking gone from his face. I was taken aback almost at how serious he looked. For once he didn't even have his signature smirk on his face. It was … haunting almost.

"What are you—" I started to ask.

The corner of his lips twitched up. "Don't complain Onna."

Instantly my lips were sealed. I smiled, looking up at him as eventually the flowing stream of chakra stopped and his hand fell off of my shoulder, back towards his side. He smirked, not quite meeting my eyes and I realized that he just gave me a gift. It was probably one of the nicest things anyone in the entire Akatsuki could do for someone else. Giving someone their chakra … that was like giving someone a chance to fight and survive.

"Seeya around kid," he announced before he turned and disappeared around the corner. I stared after him for a second before I turned and walked straight into Pein and Konan's office.

This office was large, but surprisingly empty for what I thought it would look like. The walls were bare. Only one large desk sat toward the back of the room, directly in front of a giant empty window that overlooked all of the village around us. The only other unique features about it were the four pillars, one near each corner, and the fact that the middle of the room was a step deeper than the rest, giving it a step. I wasn't quite sure what I was thinking their office would be like in my mind, but this wasn't it. It was slightly disappointing.

What was stranger was the fact that Madara was no where in sight. Pein sat at his desk, eye closed and hands folded in front of his face. It was odd knowing I would have to address him as the leader. Konan stood off by the window behind her orange haired companion, gazing out over the city.

Clearing my throat slightly, I stepped forward. "You called?"

Pein's eyes opened and he shifted only slightly, straightening even more and looking at me blankly. Konan didn't even twitch. I nearly raised an eyebrow in surprise. Not even a comment about my lack of respect?

"It's time for you to go on another mission," he announced simply. "You have neglected your duty of dispatching Hayato for too long." I opened my mouth to protest that they had kept me here working on finding the jinjurican, but he continued on before I could utter a syllable. "You are going to be traveling with Deidara to destroy Hayato's headquarters. Zetsu will take you to where Deidara is posted at the moment and you will return directly after your mission is complete. If you try to escape they are ordered to kill you on the spot."

Closing my eyes, I let out a deep sigh. So I'd be working that the weird kid Deidara huh? That would be interesting. Couldn't be any worse than Hidan and Kakuzu.

"Do you have any questions?"

I opened my eyes, meeting his heavy gaze. "No."

"Then leave as soon as you are packed."

* * *

><p>I took a deep breath of the fresh air outside, enjoying the few seconds I had outside of the tall metal building I had been trapped in for the past couple of months. For once it wasn't raining. It always seemed to be raining wherever the hell I was—shocker—so seeing the absent blue sky seemed to be a gift from heaven. Despite the lack of precipitation I could still taste the moister in the air.<p>

Zetsu was late. Something big must have come up.

With a sigh I quickly studied my surroundings in case the chance would ever come that I could make a break for it, knowing I probably would never have another chance. I'd want to be as prepared as possible. Not that I ever would try to escape. I'd pretty much accepted the fact that my only way out of the Akatsuki would be to kill Hayato. Still, old habits died hard I guess.

Unlike most cities that I had been in, the roads here were cobblestone, carefully placed so that they were flat and even. The buildings were all extremely tall, layers upon layers of the city all stacked on top of one another with paths and overhanging walkways everywhere above me. Hanging paper lanterns lit everything, decorated in the shape of an angel. It would be a great place for me to fight in. Lots of places to hide and manipulate. Enough space to lose someone. Surprise them.

All around me people walked by, women and children, men, and kids. No one seemed to notice the dark black fabric of my cloak and how the blood red clouds burned at my skin. No one seemed to care. Not even a second glance.

They looked happy, I noticed, seeing the smiles. Odd considering they were housing some of the most notorious criminals in the entire ninja world. I frowned slightly. Did they even know that?

I rubbed the back of my neck. How could people simply accept the Akatsuki?

Just then, I felt a chill run down my back and my ears started to burn. Someone was watching me. Turning around casually, I scanned everything. Before I spotted him I smelt his ungoldly scent in the air and to my horror I felt goosebumps rise on my skin. Instantly my heart leapt into overdrive and I felt light headed for a second. Zetsu clung in the shadows of his Head Quarters, his face hidden behind the leaves of his lush Venus flytrap. My stomach stirred. Frowning, I bit my lip, not sure why I wanted to smile over at him.

Had I learned to accept the Akatsuki? Didn't I wake up this morning expecting to meet them just like it was normal? Why did I think I was so different from everyone else?

_When did I become so philosophic? _I frowned, scratching my neck again as I made my way over towards Zetsu.

Were we really going to leave in front of all of these people?

I shook my head, hiding my hands up in the long baggy sleeves. Zetsu shifted seeing me walking over, the Venus flytrap curling open just enough to show one glowing golden eye. A chill ran down my spine, but I ignored it. Instead, I slipped into the shadows of the building until I found myself standing directly in front of him, shuffling from foot to foot. Curiously I glanced around, watching people moving around us oblivious in their daily lives.

"_Nervous?_" he asked, his voice like honey. I glanced over at him just in time to see the Venus flytrap crack open just a bit further. "_**How stupid.**_"

I ignored his dark half. Secretly, I tried to play calm, but inside I was anything but. Just hearing his voice made my entire body taunt like a bow. My hands fidgeted nervously, every nerve in my body buzzing and confused. I couldn't seem to hold still, a cold sweat breaking out on my skin as my heart raced in my chest. Pounded. Screamed. There was something seriously wrong with me.

"When am I ever nervous?" I countered, hoping it would end the conversation.

"_**You want a list?**_" he sneered sarcastically.

I had to physically resist the urge to punch him, but I knew he was right. _Again,_ I sighed. _Why the hell is he _always _right?_

Swallowing, I glanced around again before looking expectantly at him. I didn't have all day to stand around here and chat. Apparently, I had a mission to carry out as a full time prisoner. Zetsu's eyes stared into mine, reading me inside and out and I couldn't help but feel the hairs on the back of my neck stand up like static. It felt like someone had just pushed me out in front of everyone in the world in my underwear.

"So," I drawled out. "Are we going to go?"

Immediately the deep green Venus flytrap curled open to reveal his award winning smirk plastered on his black and white face. He shoved off the side of HQ and stepped towards me. Not thinking, I stepped back. His head tilted to the side slightly, but he moved no further.

Mentally smacking myself, I glanced around, looking for all of the people in the city as an excuse. "Aren't we going to go somewhere … more discrete?" I asked. Even to me, my voice was too high, too tight. I pinched myself in my sleeve.

"_Are you afraid to be seen with me?_"

There was something dangerous in his voice I hadn't heard before, an edge o it that made me freeze. Frowning, moved to correct myself. I wasn't afraid to be seen with Zetsu. I mean, sure, I knew it wasn't the best to be seen around him all the time in the Akatsuki because they might think things, but we were on a mission now. There wasn't a reason to be afraid to be seen with him. Is that what he thought?

His face was blank and locked, completely guarded from me. I stared hard into his eyes, my hands finally stilling at my sides. Did I hurt him somehow? Zetsu? The thought seemed impossible.

"No," I murmured. "Why would I be afraid of you?"

He didn't say anything else, for once his eyes locked on something else besides my soul. I stopped myself from fidgeting, feeling it would be wrong somehow, as his eyes gazed off to an imaginary point in his mind. Maybe he was arguing with himself again. Or maybe, he was being just like everyone else.

Gulping, I stepped forward, close enough where I could smell nothing else but his intoxicating musk and feel the subtle waves of his chakra rolling over me in a caress.I closed my eyes for a second, breathing it in. My toes tingled. _Oh god,_ I sighed, feeling slightly hazy as I looked up at him. This close, his tall angular frame seemed to tower over me. His eyes were suddenly back on me, watching my every move.

I reached out to touch him, knowing fully well I was nearly stepping into an embrace with him, but it was enough to finally get him to move. Easily, his arms wrapped around my waist, pulling me into him and before I knew it, the pain of merging together washed over me.

It seemed to go faster, twisting together and sinking down into the ground. Still I could feel out skin, our clothes, our very minds mixing and joining together. Melding. Changing. For the first time, I felt his thoughts. Distant. Too fuzzy to understand. But I felt them. Ghosts of his feelings. Desires.

Something burning started to spread it what could only be my chest. As we started to reemerge, I wanted to cry out, not sure why, as I clung to him. Pressing every inch of me I could against him, I curled into him. My body was too hot. Too tight.

Panting, I clung to Zetsu, unable to move as we finally separated from the ground. I didn't care if I should let go. I didn't care what would happen if Deidara was watching right now. I couldn't think. I couldn't move. I couldn't _breathe._

"_**We're here,**_" Zetsu announced, loosening his arms around me.

I forced myself to do the same, cringing at how it felt like I lost something as the cool air slipped between us. My hands lingered on his chest, feeling each rise and fall of each breath and small thump of his heart. Nothing in front of my eyes seemed to want to focus as I blinked rapidly.

Finally I was able to look up at him. I don't know what possessed me to do it instead of turning and walking away, but the second I met his gaze it felt like my heart stopped. Something deep shone in his golden eyes, something heavy. Static seemed to take over the air and I felt myself drawn into him like something was pulling me to him. My eyes flickered down towards his lips and a slight pain hit my stomach.

I wanted him.

By God, I wanted him.

Jerking away like he burnt me, I mumbled, "Thanks." My voice was shaky, quiet. Yet, I didn't dare and look back at him to see if he noticed. Of course he would.

I rubbed my hands on my hips, hoping to rub off whatever had come over me. It had to be because of him. Because of his stupid Mayfly technique. Every time it felt like I was molding into him. I shivered. In my head, I wasn't sure if I liked that idea or not.

A thought struck me and I spun around. "Hey, are you going to …"

He was gone.


End file.
